In-Cloud Icing and Large-Drop Experiment (ICICLE). Part III: Supplemental Datasets

The FAA In-Cloud ICing and Large-drop Experiment (ICICLE) flight program used the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) Convair-580 aircraft to collect in-situ observations in a variety of aircraft icing and non-icing environments, including supercooled large drops (SLD), through a sophisticated airborne instrumentation suite. To supplement this dataset, additional surface-based sensors were deployed at various airports within the ICICLE domain to provide meteorological information at the ground-level. These ground suites provided information beyond what is available through the operational surface observation sites. Obervations from these sites included automated precipitation type observations of snow, freezing drizzle, drizzle, freezing rain, rain and ice pellets, as well as measurements of particle sizes, particle fall velocities, ice accretion, liquid water equivalent measurements, and state parameters (temperature, wind speed, etc.).

Four universities within the ICICLE domain also provided students and resources to launch supplemental radiosondes from each campus at varying hours in support of forecasting operations before flights and nowcasting operations during flights. In addition, Mesoscale Domain Sector scans were performed by the NOAA Satellite Analysis Branch, providing 1-minute high resolution GOES-16 returns within the domain. The National Weather Service Radar Operations Center also modified the operational Volume Coverage Pattern (VCP) 35, adding a high-angle 19.5 degree scan, for ten NEXRADs located within the ICICLE domain.

An in-depth overview of all the supplemental measurements for ICICLE will be presented, along with their uses during ICICLE. Information on ICICLE flights where aircraft data is collected within the vicinity of deployed surface sensors will also be presented.

This research is in response to requirements and funding by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official policy or position of the FAA.