Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: The NASA Convective Processes Experiment-Cabo Verde (CPEX-CV) field campaign took place in September 2022 out of Sal Island, Cabo Verde. A unique payload aboard the NASA DC-8 aircraft equipped with advanced remote sensing and in situ instrumentation, in conjunction with radiosonde launches and satellite observations, allowed CPEX-CV to target the coupling between atmospheric dynamics, marine boundary layer properties, convection, and the dust-laden Saharan air layer in the data-sparse tropical East Atlantic region. CPEX-CV provided measurements of African easterly wave environments, diurnal cycle impacts on convective life cycle, and several Saharan dust outbreaks, including the highest dust optical depth observed by the DC-8 interacting with what would become Tropical Storm Hermine. Preliminary results from CPEX-CV underscore the positive impact of dedicated tropical East Atlantic observations on downstream forecast skill, including sampling environmental forcings impacting the development of several nondeveloping and developing convective systems such as Hurricanes Fiona and Ian. Combined airborne radar, lidar, and radiometer measurements uniquely provide near-storm environments associated with convection on various spatiotemporal scales and, with in situ observations, insights into controls on Saharan dust properties with transport. The DC-8 also collaborated with the European Space Agency to perform coordinated validation flights under the Aeolus spaceborne wind lidar and over the Mindelo ground site, highlighting the enhanced sampling potential through partnership opportunities. CPEX-CV engaged in professional development through dedicated team-building exercises that equipped the team with a cohesive approach for targeting CPEX-CV science objectives and promoted active participation of scientists across all career stages. Significance Statement Sparse data over the tropical East Atlantic Ocean challenge forecasting of downstream impacts, including hurricane formation and Saharan dust transport. The NASA Convective Processes Experiment-Cabo Verde measured vertical profiles of winds, dust, and moisture near and within clouds and precipitating storms in this region during September 2022 using aircraft outfitted with a unique set of instrumentation. With 13 research flights covering 90 h, analysis of these data shows the positive impact of these observations on forecast skill, highlights the detrimental impacts of dry air on early hurricane development, challenges previous thinking on how dust is vertically distributed in the atmosphere, and connects winds with storm structure and intensity. This dataset is publicly available for further research on these relationships.
Authors: Edward P. Nowottnick, Angela K. Rowe, Amin R. Nehrir, Jonathan A. Zawislak, Aaron J. Piña, Will McCarty, Rory A. Barton-Grimley, Kristopher M. Bedka, J. Ryan Bennett, Alan Brammer, Megan E. Buzanowicz, Gao Chen, Shu-Hua Chen, Shuyi S. Chen, Peter R. Colarco, John W. Cooney, Ewan Crosbie, James Doyle, Thorsten Fehr, Richard A. Ferrare, Steven D. Harrah, Svetla M. Hristova-Veleva, Bjorn H. Lambrigtsen, Quinton A. Lawton, Allan Lee, Eleni Marinou, Elinor R. Martin, Griša Močnik, Edoardo Mazza, Raquel Rodriguez Monje, Kelly M. Núñez Ocasio, Zhaoxia Pu, Manikandan Rajagopal, Jeffrey S. Reid, Claire E. Robinson, Rosimar Rios-Berrios, Benjamin D. Rodenkirch, Naoko Sakaeda, Vidal Salazar, Michael A. Shook, Leigh Sinclair, Gail M. Skofronick-Jackson, K. Lee Thornhill, Ryan D. Torn, David P. Van Gilst, Peter G. Veals, Holger Vömel, Sun Wong, Shun-Nan Wu, Luke D. Ziemba, Edward J. Zipser
Institutions: Goddard Space Flight Center, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Langley Research Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Office of Marine and Aviation Operations, US Forest Service, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Ames Research Center, Bay Area Environmental Research Institute, Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere, Colorado State University, Adnet Systems (United States), University of Washington, University of California, Davis, Analytical Mechanics Associates (United States), United States Naval Research Laboratory, European Space Agency, European Space Research and Technology Centre, California Institute of Technology, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, University of Miami, National Observatory of Athens, University of Oklahoma, University of Nova Gorica, NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research, Texas A&M University, University of Utah, University of Alabama in Huntsville, University at Albany, State University of New York
Language: English
Subfield: Atmospheric Science
Field: Earth and Planetary Sciences
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDG: Climate action
Open Access status: green
Funder: European Commission
OpenAlex ID: W4402268504