Lower Atmosphere Process Studies at Elevation: A Remotely Piloted Aircraft Team Experiment (LAPSE-RATE)

Lower Atmosphere Process Studies at Elevation - a Remotely-piloted Aircraft Team Experiment (LAPSE-RATE) was conducted 13-20 July 2018 across the San Luis Valley of southern Colorado. LAPSE-RATE involved the coordinated operation of 44 small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) executing more than 1200 flights spanning over 230 flight hours. UAS were complemented by radiosondes, mobile mesonets, fixed-site near-surface stations, Doppler LIDARs, an atmospheric emitted radiance interferometer, and a microwave radiometer. Project personnel (~100) included representatives from seven universities, the National Center for Atmospheric Research, and the National Severe Storms Laboratory along with an international partner (the Finish Meteorological Institute) and two private-sector companies (Black Swift Technologies and Engenius Micro). Data collection supported the following research foci: 1) cold air drainage through canyons on the Valley perimeter, 2) morning-to-daytime transition of the lower atmospheric state at points distributed along the Valley floor, 3) evolution of the atmospheric state as air passes across irrigated portions of the Valley into the non-irrigated portions, and the 4) initiation of thunderstorms within the Valley. This presentation will overview the project and will include preliminary results from several operation periods.