ARM Aerial Facility Leads International Discussions on Aircraft Research

Published: 30 June 2009

The vast majority of global geoscience aircraft are operated by the agencies within the Interagency Coordinating Committee for Airborne Geosciences Research and Applications (ICCAGRA) and the European Fleet for Airborne Research (EUFAR). In May, the first joint meeting between these two entities was held in Stresa, Italy, to reach an understanding of how each group works and consider ways the two groups could work together in the future. Rick Petty, program manager for the ARM Aerial Facility, and Jason Tomlinson, operations lead for the ARM Aerial Facility and chair of the ICCAGRA, both coordinated and attended the meeting.

The joint meeting, held on May 3, was the first of several among the two groups during the 33rd International Symposium on Remote Sensing from May 4-8. Key progress was made during the working group meeting of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS) Technical Commission, Standardization of Airborne Platform Interface. Both the U.S. and European representatives identified 10 items with the potential for more international collaboration and standardization of sensor interface components, such as instrument mounting mechanisms, power plugs, and data systems and reporting. Though ICCAGRA has begun to accomplish this standardization between U.S. agencies, there is still disparity at the global scale.

“When 70 to 80 percent of the world’s geoscience aircraft operators make a recommendation, that carries a bit of weight,” said Jason. “As agencies upgrade their aircraft, these standardizations will start to be incorporated, allowing for rapid installation of sensors on geoscience research aircraft. This will save both agencies and scientists time and money that is often spent on making multiple versions of one instrument,” he added.