| Instrument:
Microwave Temperature Profiler (MTP)
Principal Investigator: Michael J. ("MJ") Mahoney Organization: Jet Propulsion
Laboratory Phone:
(818)-354-5584 |
 MTP located on outside of WB-57 left wind pod |
MTP data obtained during CRAVE will be used to validate temperature
profiles measured by Aura/MLS, /TES, and /HIRLDS. More generally, the
MTP data are used to provide meteorological context for measurements
made by in situ and remote sensors of atmospheric gases,
hydrometeors and aerosols. In arctic regions for example, the ATP can
be used to locate altitudes where the air is cold enough to condense
nitric acid or water vapor to form polar stratospheric clouds. In
addition, the temperature field can used to determine the tropopause
altitude, which is extremely important to interpreting other
measurements. The ATP can also be used to derive the altitudes of
isentrope surfaces to look for the presence of meso- to synoptic-scale
atmospheric waves. The "waviness" of isentropic surfaces is used to
characterize the magnitude of temperature fluctuations, which is needed
for deriving effective temperatures to be used in atmospheric chemistry
calculations involving reaction rates and solubility.
The MTP on the WB57 consists of three components: the sensor
unit (located behind the fairing in the figure above), the data
unit (which controls the sensor unit and records data from it), and
the real-time analysis computer (which converts the measured
brightness temperatures into an altitude temperature profile). The
latter two components are located in the pod adapter ring rack,
although the 5 kg real-time analysis computer is not being used during
CRAVE because of weight limitations. A video feed of the ATP is
available for display in the back seat of the WB57 (shown to the
right), and this information can be used in real-time to control the
altitude of the WB57 with respect to the tropopause. The total mass of
the instrument is ~ 15 kg, split roughly equally between the three
components.