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Full-Text Articles in Physics

A Laboratory Facility To Study Gas-Aerosol-Cloud Interactions In A Turbulent Environment: The Π Chamber, K. Chang, J. Bench, M. Brege, Will Cantrell, K. Chandrakar, David Ciochetto, Claudio Mazzoleni, Lynn Mazzoleni, Dennis Niedermeier, R. A. Shaw Dec 2016

A Laboratory Facility To Study Gas-Aerosol-Cloud Interactions In A Turbulent Environment: The Π Chamber, K. Chang, J. Bench, M. Brege, Will Cantrell, K. Chandrakar, David Ciochetto, Claudio Mazzoleni, Lynn Mazzoleni, Dennis Niedermeier, R. A. Shaw

Department of Physics Publications

A detailed understanding of interactions of aerosols, cloud droplets/ice crystals, and trace gases within the atmosphere is of prime importance for an accurate understanding of Earth’s weather and climate. One aspect that remains especially vexing is that clouds are ubiquitously turbulent, and therefore thermodynamic and compositional variables, such as water vapor supersaturation, fluctuate in space and time. With these problems in mind, a multiphase, turbulent reaction chamber—called the Π chamber because of the internal volume of 3.14 m3 with the cylindrical insert installed—has been developed. It is capable of pressures ranging from 1,000 to –60 hPa and can sustain …


Evaluation Of The Potential Impact On Flow And Sediment Transport From Proposed James River Crossings, Yinglong J. Zhang, Harry V. Wang, Zhuo Liu, Mac Sisson, Jian Shen Oct 2016

Evaluation Of The Potential Impact On Flow And Sediment Transport From Proposed James River Crossings, Yinglong J. Zhang, Harry V. Wang, Zhuo Liu, Mac Sisson, Jian Shen

Reports

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the potential impact on flow and sedimentation potential due to the proposed new crossings on the lower James River by VDOT. This project was built upon previous effort in the same area (Boon et al. 1999); the latter used VIMS’ 3D Hydrodynamic-Sedimentation Model (HYSED) to study the impact of the bridge-tunnel infrastructure on the physical characteristics (including tides, currents, circulation, salinity and sedimentation) under the existing and alternative scenarios. Due to various limitations at that time, smaller bridge pilings were not resolved but instead parameterized. In this update study, we used an …


Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Newsletter (Summer 2016), Cheryl Stevens, Dean Jul 2016

Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Newsletter (Summer 2016), Cheryl Stevens, Dean

Ogden College of Science & Engineering Publications

No abstract provided.


Simultaneous, Collocated Rayleigh And Sodium Lidar Temperature Comparison, Leda Sox, Vincent B. Wickwar, Tao Yuan, Neal Criddle Jun 2016

Simultaneous, Collocated Rayleigh And Sodium Lidar Temperature Comparison, Leda Sox, Vincent B. Wickwar, Tao Yuan, Neal Criddle

Posters

There are relatively few instruments that have the capabilities to make near continuous measurements of the mesosphere-lower-thermosphere (MLT) region. Rayleigh-scatter (RS) and resonance lidars, particularly sodium (Na) resonance lidar, have been the two dominant ground-based techniques for acquiring mesosphere and MLT vertical temperature profiles, respectively, for more than two decades. With these measurements, the dynamics and long-term temperature trends of the MLT region can be studied. For the first time, we will present simultaneous, night-time averaged temperatures acquired from the same observational site, on the campus of Utah State University (USU), using these two lidar techniques. This comparison is also …


Obtaining Continuous Observations From The Upper Stratosphere To The Lower Thermosphere Using The Alo-Usu Rayleigh-Scatter Lidar., Jonathan L. Price, Vincent B. Wickwar, Leda Sox, Matthew T. Emerick, Joshua P. Herron, Shayli Elliott, Bryant Ward, Benjamin Lovelady Jun 2016

Obtaining Continuous Observations From The Upper Stratosphere To The Lower Thermosphere Using The Alo-Usu Rayleigh-Scatter Lidar., Jonathan L. Price, Vincent B. Wickwar, Leda Sox, Matthew T. Emerick, Joshua P. Herron, Shayli Elliott, Bryant Ward, Benjamin Lovelady

Posters

The Rayleigh-scatter lidar at the Atmospheric Lidar Observatory at Utah State University (ALO-USU; 41.74° N, 111.81° W) started observations in 1993. In 2012 the original lidar system was upgraded with an array of larger mirrors and two lasers to enable observations of the upper mesosphere and lower thermosphere from 70 km to about 115 km in altitude. (Continued refinement should provide data to above 120 km.) Recently, the original system was reconfigured [Elliott et al., 2016] to again observe the lower mesosphere between 40 km and 90 km. Initial data collected by these two parts of the Rayleigh system have …


Seasonal Temperatures From The Upper Mesosphere To The Lower Thermosphere Obtained With The Large, Alo-Usu, Rayleigh Lidar, Vincent B. Wickwar, Leda Sox, Matthew T. Emerick, Joshua P. Herron Jun 2016

Seasonal Temperatures From The Upper Mesosphere To The Lower Thermosphere Obtained With The Large, Alo-Usu, Rayleigh Lidar, Vincent B. Wickwar, Leda Sox, Matthew T. Emerick, Joshua P. Herron

Posters

Observations have been made with the large, Rayleigh-scatter lidar at the Atmospheric Lidar Observatory at Utah State University (ALO-USU; 41.74° N, 111.81° W) from summer 2014 to summer 2015. During this first operational year, the lidar acquired nearly 100 nights of observations between 70 and 115 km altitude, i.e., from the upper mesosphere, through the mesopause, and into the lower thermosphere. This was possible because of the large 4.9 m2 collecting area of the mirrors and the 42 W of 532 nm emission at 30 Hz. These two factors produce a figure of merit, the power-aperture-product, of 206 Wm2, making …


Reestablishing Observations Throughout The Mesosphere With The Alo-Usu Rayleigh-Scatter Lidar, Shayli Elliott, Bryant Ward, Benjamin Lovelady, Jessica Gardiner, Lucas Priskos, Matthew T. Emerick, Vincent B. Wickwar Jun 2016

Reestablishing Observations Throughout The Mesosphere With The Alo-Usu Rayleigh-Scatter Lidar, Shayli Elliott, Bryant Ward, Benjamin Lovelady, Jessica Gardiner, Lucas Priskos, Matthew T. Emerick, Vincent B. Wickwar

Posters

In the last few years, the Rayleigh-scatter lidar at the Atmospheric Lidar Observatory at Utah State University (ALO-USU; 41.74° N, 111.81° W) has been upgraded to extend observations from 70 km up to 115 km. This project describes a student project to build and use a complementary Rayleigh-scatter lidar to go from 40 to 90 km, from the upper stratosphere to the upper mesosphere. At the upper end, this new lidar overlaps with the high-altitude lidar. This was done in a period of just over two months. This lidar shares the same lasers, but introduces a 44-cm mirror and a …


Searching For Troposphere-Mesosphere Connections Using The Alo-Usu Rayleigh-Scatter Lidar, David K. Moser, Vincent B. Wickwar, Joshua P. Herron Jun 2016

Searching For Troposphere-Mesosphere Connections Using The Alo-Usu Rayleigh-Scatter Lidar, David K. Moser, Vincent B. Wickwar, Joshua P. Herron

Posters

The paucity of whole-atmosphere data introduces significant challenges that hinder the study of atmospheric couplings. The mesosphere in particular is a low-information void between the lower and upper atmosphere, which may prevent us from a complete realization of vertical interactions. The Rayleighscatter lidar at Utah State University’s Atmospheric Lidar Observatory (ALO-USU; 41.74° N, 111.81° W), operated with little interruption from 1993 to 2004, providing a valuable temporal and spatial (45 – 90 km) resource in this realm. When studied alongside a multitude of other atmospheric data sources, possible unforeseen connections or insights may result. In this study, an adaptive fit …


Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Newsletter (Spring 2016), Cheryl Stevens, Dean, Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Mar 2016

Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Newsletter (Spring 2016), Cheryl Stevens, Dean, Ogden College Of Science & Engineering

Ogden College of Science & Engineering Publications

No abstract provided.


Retrival Of Atmospheric Aerosol Size Distributions Using Stochastic Particle Swarm Optimization, Benjamin D. Nault-Maurer Jan 2016

Retrival Of Atmospheric Aerosol Size Distributions Using Stochastic Particle Swarm Optimization, Benjamin D. Nault-Maurer

All College Thesis Program, 2016-2019

A stochastic particle swarm optimization (SPSO) technique’s robustness is studied in regards to atmospheric aerosol size distribution estimations for a bimodal distribution that focuses on Aitken and accumulation mode aerosols. The SPSO method is used to calculate a set of 11 aerosol optical depth (AOD) values based on a size distribution and match them to an inputted set of AOD values. This method is tested using computer generated AOD values with fixed distribution parameters, generated AOD values with varying distribution parameters, two sets of AOD measurements in clear conditions, and one set of AOD values in hazy conditions. The SPSO …


Development Of A Low-Cost Arduino-Based Sonde For Coastal Applications, Grant Lockridge, Brian Dzwonkowski, Reid Nelson, Sean P. Powers Jan 2016

Development Of A Low-Cost Arduino-Based Sonde For Coastal Applications, Grant Lockridge, Brian Dzwonkowski, Reid Nelson, Sean P. Powers

University Faculty and Staff Publications

This project addresses the need for an expansion in the monitoring of marine environments by providing a detailed description of a low cost, robust, user friendly sonde, built on Arduino Mega 2560 (Mega) and Arduino Uno (Uno) platforms. The sonde can be made without specialized tools or training and can be easily modified to meet individual application requirements. The platform allows for internal logging of multiple parameters of which conductivity, temperature, and GPS position are demonstrated. Two design configurations for different coastal hydrographic applications are highlighted to show the robust and versatile nature of this sensor platform. The initial sonde …


Mipas Imk/Iaa Cfc-11 (Ccl3f) And Cfc-12 (Ccl2f2) Measurements: Accuracy, Precision And Long-Term Stability, E. Eckert, A. Laeng, S. Lossow, S. Kellmann, G. Stiller, T. Von Clarmann, N. Glatthor, M. Hopfner, M. Kiefer, H. Oelhaf, P. F. Bernath Jan 2016

Mipas Imk/Iaa Cfc-11 (Ccl3f) And Cfc-12 (Ccl2f2) Measurements: Accuracy, Precision And Long-Term Stability, E. Eckert, A. Laeng, S. Lossow, S. Kellmann, G. Stiller, T. Von Clarmann, N. Glatthor, M. Hopfner, M. Kiefer, H. Oelhaf, P. F. Bernath

Chemistry & Biochemistry Faculty Publications

Profiles of CFC-11 (CCl3F) and CFC-12 (CCl2F2) of the Michelson Interferometer for Passive Atmospheric Sounding (MIPAS) aboard the European satellite Envisat have been retrieved from versions MIPAS/4.61 to MI-PAS/4.62 and MIPAS/5.02 to MIPAS/5.06 level-1b data using the scientific level-2 processor run by Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Institute of Meteorology and Climate Research (IMK) and Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas (CSIC), Instituto de Astrofisica de Andalucia (IAA). These profiles have been compared to measurements taken by the balloon-borne cryosampler, Mark IV (MkIV) and MIPAS-Balloon (MIPAS-B), the airborne MIPAS-STRatospheric aircraft (MIPAS-STR), the satellite-borne Atmospheric Chemistry …