Multiple stacked UAVs for observing the effects of dust and pollution on clouds, and radiometric fluxes

摘要

The autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle (AUAV) program at Scripps Institution of Oceanography culminated in the Maldives Air Campaign (MAC) during March 2006. This campaign demonstrated a novel application of lightweight AUAVs as affordable and cost-effective observing platforms for environmental sciences. The fundamental science objective of the MAC is to provide new insights into how aerosols and clouds regulate the planetary albedo, with particular emphasis on how anthropogenic aerosols are modifying the cloudy sky albedo (the so-called indirect effect). The observing system consisted of three light-weight AUAVs, instrumented with miniaturized instruments for measuring aerosol concentrations and size distribution, cloud microphysical properties, black carbon concentration and broad-band and narrow-band solar fluxes.