CAAP

Calibrator for Airborne Aerosol Probes

13 May 2024 - 17 May 2024

Lead Scientist: Andrei Vakhtin

Observatory: AAF (ARM Aerial Facility)

One of the key factors contributing to high-quality field measurements is proper and timely calibration of the instruments used. Field calibration (as opposed to laboratory calibration) is critical. In this campaign, Mesa Photonics will provide its SBIR Phase II prototype of the portable, battery-powered monodisperse aerosol/droplet generator to field-calibrate aerosol measurement instruments deployed on the ArcticShark UAS during the missions planned for spring/summer 2024. The generator will produce monodisperse coarse-mode aerosols of inorganic salts in a size range of about 1-10 µm, which fully or partially covers the measurement size ranges of the aerosol probes involved. The generator will also produce monodisperse water droplets 20-50 µm in diameter to check calibration of the cloud probes. The goals include assessment of the re-calibration requirements for the aerosol measurement instruments and evaluating possible systematic uncertainties in aerosol size distribution data reported by the scattering-based aerosol probes. This campaign will also provide an opportunity to test and evaluate the monodisperse aerosol/droplet generator prototype in the field, under real-life operational conditions.