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Balloons

News:

ENVISAT Validation

Within the framework of the ENVISAT Validation project, the LPMA/DOAS balloon gondola performed successfully a flight from Teresina/Brazil on June 17, 2005. This flight was one of the first stratospheric balloon flights in the tropics carrying a large research payload (~500 kg). Its primary objective was the validation of the measurements of the MIPAS and SCIAMACHY instruments. For more information see SCIAMACHY Validation and Interpretation Group (SCIAVALIG) , German Contribution to the Validation of SCIAMACHY , MIPAS-Envisat site a IMK Karlsruhe or Official ESA Page.

Movie of the balloon launch on March 23, 2003 at Kiruna, Sweden (8.37 MB, mpg1): launch.mpg

Scientific Objectives:

Stratospheric research at the IUP-University Heidelberg concentrates on an improved understanding of the photochemical processes controlling stratospheric ozone. This aim is primarily tackled through direct Sun UV/visible/IR spectroscopy of stratospheric trace gases and the aerosol extinction during stratospheric balloon soundings of the joint French/German LPMA/DOAS (Laboratoire de Physique Moleculaire et Applications/Differential Optical AbsorptionSpectroscopy) gondola. For that purpuse, a suite of stratospheric balloon flights were undertaken since 1996. In the basic configuration the joint French/German balloon gondola accommodates an Fourier Transform interferometer (LPMA) operating in the near and far-IR and a DOAS double grating spectrograph which has been developed and designed at the IUP. In detatil the primary scientific objectives are (for details see publications...):

the stratospheric chemistry and budget of iodine (IO, OIO, Iy)
the stratospheric chemistry and budget of odd nitrogen (NO, NO2, HNO3, ClONO2)
the atmospheric aerosol extinction
the UV/visible actinic fluxes (JNO2) at large solar zenith angles
the spectroscopic data base for the O2-O2- collisional complex, the NO2 molecule, ...
the validation of remote sensing satellite instruments, such as

In addition to the existing instrument a light weight (2 kg) and low power consumming UV/visible spectrograph is under development that will allow us to probe the atmospheric (tropospheric and stratospheric) photochemistry on more versatile missions all over the globe.

Measured species by LPMA/DOAS:


Parameter	Instrument	Precision/ Accuracy	Validation Height Range	SCIAMACHY Height Range
T		± 0.5 K	0 to 30/40 km	0 to 50 km
P		± 1 %	0 to 30/40 km	0 to50 km
O₃	DOAS	± 0.5 % 10¹⁰molecule/cm³	5 to 30/40 km	0 to 60 km
O₃	LPMA	± 4%	5 to 30/40 km	0 to 60 km
O₄	DOAS	± 4 %	5 to 30 km	0 to 25 km
NO₂	DOAS	± 2.0 % 10⁹mole/cm³	5 to 30/40 km	0 to 40 km
NO₂	LPMA	± 11.0 %	15 to 30/40 km	0 to 40 km
NO₃	DOAS	± 10.0 %	5 to 30/40 km	20 to 40 km
BrO	DOAS	± 4.0 % ± 12.0 %	5 to 30/40 km	15 to 35 km
IO	DOAS	± 10.0 %	10 to 35 km	?
OIO	DOAS	± 10.0 %	10 to 35 km	?
OClO	DOAS	± 3.0 % ± 8.0 %	5 to 30/40 km	15 to 35 km
CH₄	LPMA	± 7 %	10 to 30/40 km	0 to 40 km
CO	LPMA	± 7 %	5 to 30/40 km	0 to 35 km
N₂O	LPMA	± 10 %	5 to 30/40 km	0 to 40 km
CO₂	LPMA	± 5 %	10 to 30/40 km	0 to 60 km
HNO₃	LPMA	± 15 %	10 to 30/40 km	-.
ClONO₂	LPMA	± 15 %	10 to 30/40 km	-.
Mie extinction at different wavelength	LPMA and DOAS	± 15 %	10 to 30/40 km	-.

LPMA/DOAS balloon flights

SCIAMACHY validation


No	Date	Location	Geophysical Condition	Observation mode	Products
1	Nov. 23, 1996	Leon, 42.6^o N, 5.7^o W	mid-latitude fall	ascent, sunset	O3, NO2, BrO, OClO,
2	Feb. 14, 97	Kiruna, 67.9^oN, 21.1^o E	high latitude winter	ascent sunset	O3, NO2, BrO, OClO,
3	June 20, 97	Gap, 44.0^o N, 6.1^oE	mid-latitude summer	sunrise	O3, NO2, BrO, OClO,
4	March 19, 98	Leon, 42.6^o N, 5.7^o W	mid-latitude spring	ascent, sunset	O3, NO2, BrO, OClO,
5	Aug. 19/20, 98	Kiruna, 67.9^oN, 21.1^o E	high latitude summer	ascent, sunset/ sunrise	O3, NO2, BrO, OClO,
6	Feb. 10, 99	Kiruna, 67.9^oN, 21.1^o E	high latitude winter	ascent, sunset	O3, NO2, BrO, OClO,
7	June 25, 99	Gap, 44.0^o N, 6.1^oE	mid-latitude summer	sunrise	O3, NO2, BrO, OClO,
8	Feb. 18, 00	Kiruna, 67.9^oN, 21.1^o E	high latitude winter	ascent, sunset	O3, NO2, BrO, OClO,
9	Aug. 21/22, 01	Kiruna, 67.9^oN, 21.1^o E	high lat. summer,	ascent, sunset/sunrise	O3, NO2, BrO, OClO,
10	Mar. 23, 03	Kiruna, 67.9^oN, 21.1^o E	high lat. spring	ascent, sunset	O3, NO2, BrO, OClO,	O3 miniDOAS, NO2 miniDOAS
11	Oct. 09, 03	Aire sur l'Adour, 43.7^oN, 0.3^o W	mid lat. fall	ascent	O3, NO2, BrO, solar spectrum, OClO,	O3 miniDOAS, NO2 miniDOAS
12	Mar. 24, 04	Kiruna, 67.9^oN, 21.1^o E	high lat. spring	ascent, sunset	O3, NO2, BrO, OClO,	O3 miniDOAS, NO2 miniDOAS, BrO miniDOAS
13	June 17, 05	Teresina, 5.1^oS, 42.9^oW	tropics	ascent, sunset	in preparation

Main technical features of the DOAS instrument:

Schematic Drawing of the DOAS Instrument

2 grating spectrometers in one thermostated (273 K) and evacuated housing

Wavelength ranges and resolution:

UV (316 - 418 nm, Resolution: 0.5 nm)
Visible (399.9 - 653.0 nm, Resolution: 1.5 nm)

Cooled photo diode detectors (1024 diodes, T = 263 K)

Light intake: Solar tracker and glass fibre bundle

Efficient spectrometer straylight suppression

Modi of operation: balloon ascent, solar occultation

Total mass: 45 Kg

Total power consumption: ~20 W

Target species: O₃, O₄, H₂O, NO₂, OClO, BrO, IO, OIO, and Mie extinction, solar irradiance

The balloon flights are conducted by the balloon division of the French space agency CNES (Centre National d`Etudes Spatiales). The French partner in our joint collaboration is a molecular physics institute at the University of Paris LPMA/Paris (Laboratoire de Physique Moleculaire et Application).

Last modified: 2011/05/12 20:34:01.732 GMT+2; Contact: webmaster