Airborne turbulence measurements in the stratocumulus-topped marine boundary layer

A turbulence instrumentation suite capable of in-cloud measurements was integrated onto the CIRPAS Twin Otter research aircraft to study stratocumulus-topped boundary layers. Measurements of mean and turbulent wind components, air temperature, SST, humidity and fluxes of momentum, sensible and water vapor were obtained from two separate field experiments that focused on the study of the processes associated with stratocumulus clouds. Seventeen flights were conducted off of Monterey Bay during the Physics of Stratocumulus Cloud Top (POST) experiment in July-August 2008 and nineteen flights were carried out off of northern Chile during the VAMOS Ocean-Cloud-Atmosphere-Land Study-Regional Experiment (VOCALS-REx) in the October-November period of the same year. After a brief description of the measurements techniques, results from both experiments will be presented. We will focus our discussion on the similarities and differences in the structure of the stratocumulus-topped boundary layers from the two regions. Aircraft results are also compared to those obtained by the R/V Ron H. Brown during the dedicated intercomparison flight of November 10, 2008.