Platforms & Instruments

DYNAMO Facilities

Deployment Schedule

During DYNAMO, scientists plan to operate six radars; several balloon-borne sounding systems; a suite of surface radiation measurements; two research aircraft; three international research vesels; and buoy and mooring systems. Instruments will be based on various islands throughout the greater Indian Ocean region including: Addu Atoll, Maldives; Malé, Maldives; Diego Gracia, BIOT; Sri Lanka; Manus Island, Papua New Guinea; as well as aboard ocean-bound ships and research aircraft.

One of the most important types of instruments to be operated during DYNAMO are meteorological radars, which provide information about what is happening inside of the clouds and rainstorms that lead to the development of the MJO. Radars using different wavelengths are needed to observe clouds that are raining, clouds that are not raining, and moisture in the surrounding clear air. Weather balloons also need to be launched to observe the vertical structure of the atmosphere in a constant fashion over long periods of time. The surface radiation budget is another critical factor in the Earth-s climate that needs to be observed. Detailed physics within clouds are to be measured by instrumented research aircraft.

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Radars:

7 different radar frequencies will be used during DYNAMO, which allows researchers to collect data on cloud population and evolution during the initiation phase of the MJO. Properties such as cloud configuration, microphysics, height, depth, internal wind circulation, and latent heat will be monitored.

S-PolKa Radar :: S-band & Ka-band

Agency :: NSF/NCAR
Location :: Addu Atoll, Wharf Site
Operational Period :: 1 October 2011 - 15 January 2012
More information on the S-PolKa Radar

: Image courtesy of NCAR

Shared Mobile Atmospheric Research & Teaching Radar (SMART-R) :: C-band

Agencies :: The National Severe Storms Laboratory (NSSL), Texas A&M University, Texas Tech University, & The University of Oklahoma

Location :: Addu Atoll, Spit Site

Operational Period :: 1 October 2011 - 31 March 2012
More information on the SMART-R

: Image courtesy of SMART-R

Ka-band & X-band Radars

Agency :: DOE/ARM Climate Research Facility
Location :: Addu Atoll, Wharf Site & Manus Island, Papua New Guinea

Operational Period :: 1 October 2011 - 30 March 2012
More information on the SACR-AMF2

: Image courtesy of DOE/ARM

C-band Radar

Agency :: NASA/CSU
Location :: R/V Revelle
Operational Period :: 23 August 2011 - 16 February 2012
More information on the C-band Radar

: Image courtesy of NOAA

W-band Radar

Agency :: NOAA
Location :: R/V Revelle
Operational Period :: 23 August 2011 - 16 February 2012

Ka-band ARM Zenith Radar (KAZR)

Agency :: US Department of Energy's Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM)
Location :: Addu Atoll, Gan Airport & Manus Island, Papua New Guinea
Operational Period :: 1 October 2011 - 30 March 2012
More information on the KAZR

: Image courtesy of DOE/ARM

Research Ships:

Research ships play a key role in data collection for DYNAMO as they allow for measurements to be taken in remote locations. The ships are fitted with instruments that monitor both the ocean and atmosphere providing researcers with key data sets of how the air and sea interact with one another.

R/V Revelle

Agency :: U.S. University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System (UNOLS)
Location :: Indian Ocean
Operational Period :: 23 August 2011 - 16 February 2012
More information on the R/V Revelle

: Image courtesy of Scripps Institution of Oceanography

R/V Sagar Kanya

Agency :: Indian National Centre for Antarctic & Ocean Research (NCAOR)
Location :: Indian Ocean
Operational Period :: 20 September - 10 October

2011
More information on the R/V Sagar Kanya

: Image courtesy of NCAOR

JAMSTEC R/V Mirai

Agency :: Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC)
Location :: Indian Ocean
Operational Period :: 23 September - 2 December 2011
More information on the R/V Mirai

: Image courtesy of JAMSTEC

R/V Baruna Jaya 1

Agency :: Fugro Survey Private Limited, Singapore
Location :: Indian Ocean
Operational Period :: 23 September - 2 December 2011
More information on the R/V Baruna Jaya 1

: Image courtesy of Fugro

Aircraft:

The aircraft contain a suite of instruments that collect data as it flies near targeted areas during each research flight, with some instrumentation able to collect data as far away as several kilometers from the aircraft. Research aircraft have the ability to quickly fly to remote, targeted locations that would otherwise be difficult to research by research ships.

Lockheed P-3 Orion

Agency :: NOAA
Location :: based at Diego Garcia, British Indian Ocean Territory
Operational Period :: 8 November - 10 December

2011
More information on theNOAA P-3

: Image courtesy of NOAA

Falcon-20

Agency :: French Service des Avions Français InstrumentÃÂ©s pour la Recherche en Environnement (SAFIRE)
Location :: based at Addu Atoll, Gan Airport
Operational Period :: 15 November - 17 December 2011
More information on the SAFIRE Falcon-20

: Image courtesy of SAFIRE

Atmospheric Sensors:

Soundings collect the physical properties of a "column" of the atmosphere as the instrument ascends or descends, collecting data such as temperature, pressure, humidity, wind speed, & wind direction.

P-3 Dropsondes

Agency :: NOAA
Location :: dropped from NOAA P-3 aircraft
Operational Period :: 8 November - 10 December 2011
Learn more about dropsondes

: Image courtesy of NOAA

CSU Soundings

Agency :: Colorado State University (CSU)
Location :: Hulhulé Island, Malé International Airport
Operational Period :: 1 October 2011 - 15 January 2012
More information on CSU Soundings

CSU sounding launch near MalÃÂ© International Airport

International Atmospheric Observations

Agencies :: International collaboration
Location :: Global
Operational Period :: Ongoing

: Click to enlarge

Integrated Sounding System (ISS) :: Shipboard

Agency :: National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR)
Location :: based on R/V Revelle
Operational Period :: 23 August 2011 - 16 February 2012
More information on ISS Shipboard Operations

: Image courtesy of NCAR

ARM Balloon Borne Sounding Systems

Agency :: DOE/ARM Climate Research Facility
Location :: Addu Atoll, Gan Airport & Manus Island, Papua New Guinea
Operational Period :: 1 October 2011 - 31 March 2012
More information on the ARM Sounding Systems

: ARM Sounding Preparation

Integrated Sounding System (ISS)

Agency :: NCAR
Location :: Diego Garcia, British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT)
Operational Period :: 1 October 2011 - 15 January 2012
Learn more about NCAR's Integrated Sounding System

: ISS Site on Diego Garcia

Surface Sensors:

An array of surface sensors, both on land and ship, make measurements of the environment in the lower 30 feet of the atmosphere.

ARM Mobile Facility 2 :: Ceilometer, lidars, microwave, visible, and infrared radiometers; surface meteorology

Agency :: US Department of Energy's Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM)
Location :: Addu Atoll, Gan Airport
Operational Period :: 1 October 2011 - 31 March 2012
More information on the ARM Mobile Facility 2

: AMF-2 Site :: Addu Atoll

Lidar, radiometers, surface meterology, ocean surface, chemistry

Agency :: Several
Location :: R/V Revelle
Operational Period :: 23 August 2011 - 16 February 2012

Radiometer

Agency :: University of Miami
Location :: Addu Atoll, Wharf Site
Operational Period :: 1 October 2011 - 15 January 2012
Learn more about the Scanning Microwave Radiometer

: Image courtesy of Paquita Zuidema

Ocean Sensors:

Due to a shallow thermocline in the Indian Ocean, sea surface temperatures fluctuate more easily, which in turn have a greater impact on ocean-atmosphere interactions. The physical properties of the ocean, such as temperature and salinity (conductivity) are equally important as the physical properties of the atmosphere.