New information derived from measurements taken by drones on lower atmosphere structure in winter

Measurements taken in Hailuoto as part of an international research project have increased our understanding about the structure of the atmosphere and atmospheric phenomena over a frozen sea. The most interesting and challenging situations from the point of view of weather forecasting models are cloudless conditions with light wind, when temperatures are the coldest.

Photo: Timo Vihma

Two month-long measurement campaigns were carried out in February 2017 and 2018. In them, measurements were made of air temperature, humidity, wind, turbulent mixing and the resulting shifting of heat and humidity, atmospheric waves, as well as solar radiation and heat radiation of the atmosphere and the earth's surface. The measurements involved the use of both model aeroplane and helicopter-type drones, acoustic and optical remote sensing devices, and traditional weather masts with instruments. The extensive observation material has now been compiled, undergone preliminary processing, and the first findings have been analysed. They also offer possibilities for further research, and for understanding processes in the boundary layer, and for developing weather forecast models.

More information:

Research Professor Timo Vihma, Finnish Meteorological Institute, tel. 050 412 6365, timo.vihma@fmi.fi

From the Finnish Meteorological Institute, Hada Ajosenpää, Rostislav Kouznetsov, Ewan O’Connor, Irene Suomi and Gabin Urbancic took part in writing the article.

Kral, S. T., J. Reuder, T. Vihma, I. Suomi, K. Flacké Haualand, G. H. Urbancic, B. R. Greene, G.-J. Steeneveld, T. Lorenz, B. Maronga, M. O. Jonassen, H. Ajosenpää, L. Båserud, P. B. Chilson, A. A. M. Holtslag, A. D. Jenkins, R. Kouznetsov, S. Mayer, E. A. Pillar-Little, A. Rautenberg, J. Schwenkel, A. Seidl and B. Wrenger. (2020). The Innovative Strategies for Observations in the Arctic Atmospheric Boundary Layer Project ISOBAR - Unique fine-scale observations under stable and very stable conditions. Bull. Am. Meteorol. Soc., doi: 10.1175/BAMS-D-19-0212.1.

Link to the research: https://www.researchgate.net/project/Innovative-Strategies-for-Observations-of-the-Artic-Atmospheric-Boundary-LAyeR-ISOBAR

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