Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics (Feb 2021)
An overview of the ORACLES (ObseRvations of Aerosols above CLouds and their intEractionS) project: aerosol–cloud–radiation interactions in the southeast Atlantic basin
- J. Redemann,
- R. Wood,
- P. Zuidema,
- S. J. Doherty,
- B. Luna,
- S. E. LeBlanc,
- S. E. LeBlanc,
- M. S. Diamond,
- Y. Shinozuka,
- I. Y. Chang,
- R. Ueyama,
- L. Pfister,
- J.-M. Ryoo,
- J.-M. Ryoo,
- A. N. Dobracki,
- A. M. da Silva,
- K. M. Longo,
- K. M. Longo,
- M. S. Kacenelenbogen,
- C. J. Flynn,
- K. Pistone,
- K. Pistone,
- N. M. Knox,
- S. J. Piketh,
- J. M. Haywood,
- P. Formenti,
- M. Mallet,
- P. Stier,
- A. S. Ackerman,
- S. E. Bauer,
- A. M. Fridlind,
- G. R. Carmichael,
- P. E. Saide,
- P. E. Saide,
- G. A. Ferrada,
- S. G. Howell,
- S. Freitag,
- B. Cairns,
- B. N. Holben,
- K. D. Knobelspiesse,
- S. Tanelli,
- T. S. L'Ecuyer,
- A. M. Dzambo,
- O. O. Sy,
- G. M. McFarquhar,
- G. M. McFarquhar,
- M. R. Poellot,
- S. Gupta,
- J. R. O'Brien,
- A. Nenes,
- A. Nenes,
- A. Nenes,
- M. Kacarab,
- J. P. S. Wong,
- J. P. S. Wong,
- J. D. Small-Griswold,
- K. L. Thornhill,
- K. L. Thornhill,
- D. Noone,
- D. Noone,
- J. R. Podolske,
- K. S. Schmidt,
- P. Pilewskie,
- H. Chen,
- S. P. Cochrane,
- A. J. Sedlacek,
- T. J. Lang,
- E. Stith,
- M. Segal-Rozenhaimer,
- M. Segal-Rozenhaimer,
- M. Segal-Rozenhaimer,
- R. A. Ferrare,
- S. P. Burton,
- C. A. Hostetler,
- D. J. Diner,
- F. C. Seidel,
- S. E. Platnick,
- J. S. Myers,
- K. G. Meyer,
- D. A. Spangenberg,
- H. Maring,
- L. Gao
Affiliations
- J. Redemann
- School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA
- R. Wood
- Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
- P. Zuidema
- Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA
- S. J. Doherty
- Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
- B. Luna
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
- S. E. LeBlanc
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
- S. E. LeBlanc
- Bay Area Environmental Research Institute, Moffett Field, CA, USA
- M. S. Diamond
- Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
- Y. Shinozuka
- Universities Space Research Association, Columbia, MD, USA
- I. Y. Chang
- School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA
- R. Ueyama
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
- L. Pfister
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
- J.-M. Ryoo
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
- J.-M. Ryoo
- Science and Technology Corporation, Moffett Field, CA, USA
- A. N. Dobracki
- Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA
- A. M. da Silva
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA
- K. M. Longo
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA
- K. M. Longo
- Universities Space Research Association, Columbia, MD, USA
- M. S. Kacenelenbogen
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
- C. J. Flynn
- School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA
- K. Pistone
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
- K. Pistone
- Bay Area Environmental Research Institute, Moffett Field, CA, USA
- N. M. Knox
- Department of Geo-Spatial Sciences and Technology, Namibia University of Science and Technology, Windhoek, Namibia
- S. J. Piketh
- Unit for Environmental Science and Management, North-West University, Potchefstroom, North-West, South Africa
- J. M. Haywood
- College of Engineering, Mathematics and Physical Science, University of Exeter, Exeter, EX4 4QE, UK
- P. Formenti
- Laboratoire Interuniversitaire des Systèmes Atmosphériques (LISA), UMR CNRS 7583, Université Paris-Est-Créteil, Université de Paris, Institut Pierre Simon Laplace, Créteil, France
- M. Mallet
- Centre National de Recherches Météorologiques, Météo-France-CNRS, Toulouse, France
- P. Stier
- Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- A. S. Ackerman
- NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York, NY, USA
- S. E. Bauer
- NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York, NY, USA
- A. M. Fridlind
- NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York, NY, USA
- G. R. Carmichael
- Center for Global and Regional Environmental Research, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- P. E. Saide
- Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- P. E. Saide
- Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- G. A. Ferrada
- Center for Global and Regional Environmental Research, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- S. G. Howell
- Department of Oceanography, University of Hawai`i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI, USA
- S. Freitag
- Department of Oceanography, University of Hawai`i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI, USA
- B. Cairns
- NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York, NY, USA
- B. N. Holben
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA
- K. D. Knobelspiesse
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA
- S. Tanelli
- Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Madison, WI, USA
- T. S. L'Ecuyer
- Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Madison, WI, USA
- A. M. Dzambo
- Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Madison, WI, USA
- O. O. Sy
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
- G. M. McFarquhar
- School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA
- G. M. McFarquhar
- Cooperative Institute for Mesoscale Meteorological Studies (CIMMS) and School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA
- M. R. Poellot
- Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND, USA
- S. Gupta
- School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA
- J. R. O'Brien
- Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND, USA
- A. Nenes
- Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
- A. Nenes
- Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
- A. Nenes
- Foundation for Research and Technology – Hellas, Heraklion, Greece
- M. Kacarab
- Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
- J. P. S. Wong
- Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
- J. P. S. Wong
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Mount Allison University, Sackville, Canada
- J. D. Small-Griswold
- Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Hawai`i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI, USA
- K. L. Thornhill
- NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA, USA
- K. L. Thornhill
- Science Systems and Applications, Inc., Hampton, VA, USA
- D. Noone
- College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA
- D. Noone
- Department of Physics, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
- J. R. Podolske
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
- K. S. Schmidt
- Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA
- P. Pilewskie
- Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA
- H. Chen
- Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA
- S. P. Cochrane
- Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA
- A. J. Sedlacek
- Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, NY, USA
- T. J. Lang
- NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL, USA
- E. Stith
- National Suborbital Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
- M. Segal-Rozenhaimer
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
- M. Segal-Rozenhaimer
- Bay Area Environmental Research Institute, Moffett Field, CA, USA
- M. Segal-Rozenhaimer
- Department of Geophysics and Planetary Sciences, Porter School of the Environment and Earth Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
- R. A. Ferrare
- NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA, USA
- S. P. Burton
- NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA, USA
- C. A. Hostetler
- NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA, USA
- D. J. Diner
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
- F. C. Seidel
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
- S. E. Platnick
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA
- J. S. Myers
- University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
- K. G. Meyer
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA
- D. A. Spangenberg
- Science Systems and Applications, Inc., Hampton, VA, USA
- H. Maring
- NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C., USA
- L. Gao
- School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-1507-2021
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 21
pp. 1507 – 1563
Abstract
Southern Africa produces almost a third of the Earth's biomass burning (BB) aerosol particles, yet the fate of these particles and their influence on regional and global climate is poorly understood. ORACLES (ObseRvations of Aerosols above CLouds and their intEractionS) is a 5-year NASA EVS-2 (Earth Venture Suborbital-2) investigation with three intensive observation periods designed to study key atmospheric processes that determine the climate impacts of these aerosols. During the Southern Hemisphere winter and spring (June–October), aerosol particles reaching 3–5 km in altitude are transported westward over the southeast Atlantic, where they interact with one of the largest subtropical stratocumulus (Sc) cloud decks in the world. The representation of these interactions in climate models remains highly uncertain in part due to a scarcity of observational constraints on aerosol and cloud properties, as well as due to the parameterized treatment of physical processes. Three ORACLES deployments by the NASA P-3 aircraft in September 2016, August 2017, and October 2018 (totaling ∼350 science flight hours), augmented by the deployment of the NASA ER-2 aircraft for remote sensing in September 2016 (totaling ∼100 science flight hours), were intended to help fill this observational gap. ORACLES focuses on three fundamental science themes centered on the climate effects of African BB aerosols: (a) direct aerosol radiative effects, (b) effects of aerosol absorption on atmospheric circulation and clouds, and (c) aerosol–cloud microphysical interactions. This paper summarizes the ORACLES science objectives, describes the project implementation, provides an overview of the flights and measurements in each deployment, and highlights the integrative modeling efforts from cloud to global scales to address science objectives. Significant new findings on the vertical structure of BB aerosol physical and chemical properties, chemical aging, cloud condensation nuclei, rain and precipitation statistics, and aerosol indirect effects are emphasized, but their detailed descriptions are the subject of separate publications. The main purpose of this paper is to familiarize the broader scientific community with the ORACLES project and the dataset it produced.
