New Micropulse Lidars to Replace Old Ones; Deployments Begin at SGP

Published: 15 May 2006

On May 3, the first of seven new and upgraded micropulse lidars (MPLs) was deployed at the ARM Southern Great Plains (SGP) site’s Central Facility. These seven identical systems (including one spare) will replace the existing MPLs deployed at facilities throughout the SGP site and include new polarization capability. The MPLs provide critical backscatter measurements used to derive cloud-base heights, including high cirrus clouds (~18-20 km). The backscatter measurements are also used in several value-added products to provide additional cloud and aerosol properties.

After the first installation, a representative of Sigma Space Corporation—the MPL manufacturer—provided an extensive training session to technicians from SGP and the ARM North Slope of Alaska (NSA) locale. The training covered installation, initial set up, operation, problem diagnosis, and field repairs. A similar training course will be held in Darwin, Australia, for the technicians that maintain instrumentation for the ARM Mobile Facility (AMF) and the ARM Tropical Western Pacific sites. The comprehensive training will permit technicians to assume responsibility for tasks that previously required either the instrument to be shipped off-site or the instrument mentor to travel to the site. This is expected to dramatically reduce the time and expense required to repair the systems and return them to operation.

The next two MPLs are scheduled for delivery to SGP by the end of May for acceptance testing, followed by deployment to the NSA and AMF in June. The subsequent three MPLs will be shipped to Darwin for deployment at the TWP sites. After completing the training course, TWP technicians will deploy the MPLs at Manus and Nauru during scheduled maintenance trips. The old MPLs will continue to serve as backup systems at each site.