ACME

ARM Airborne Carbon Measurements (ARM-ACME)

1 October 2008 - 31 December 2011

Lead Scientist: Sebastien Biraud

Observatory: AAF, SGP

This campaign is a two-year multi-institution and multi-agency airborne study of atmospheric composition and carbon cycling in the Southern Great Plains (SGP), with scientific objectives that are central to carbon-cycle and radiative-forcing goals of the US Climate Change Research Program and the North American Carbon Program (NACP). The goal of these measurements is to improve understanding of: (a) the carbon exchange of the ARM region; (b) how CO2 and associated water and energy fluxes influence radiative forcing, convective processes, and CO2 concentrations over the ARM region, and (c) how greenhouse gases are transported on continental scales. To meet these goals, airborne measurements will be made to support the following specific scientific objectives: 1. Quantify trends and variability in atmospheric concentrations of CO2 and other greenhouse gases in North America, e.g., for NACP continental synthesis; 2. Validate NASA Orbiting Carbon Observatory column CO2 estimates; 3. Characterize the chemical fingerprint of anthropogenic GHG sources; 4. Construct regional carbon budgets and estimate CO2 , LE, and SH fluxes in SGP; 5. Develop novel tracer tools for understanding convective mixing, surface conductance, and vertical advection; 6. Provide data to improve planetary boundary layer dynamics models; 7. Improve radiation models in GCMs using column CO2 variation and trends. Support for research associated with the campaign will be provided by DOE’s Terrestrial Ecosystem Science program.”