AIRBORNE FIELD MILL PROJECT
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER

SYNTHESIS FOR JUNE 23, 2000 - ABFM

Flight Summary: Flight 1 (Non-Anvil Day)

Case 1 (Times: 1654 - 1718)
Type of case conective
Complexity complex
Convection multiple cells in the region
Electric field
  kV/m
Min Em_m = 0.010
Max Em_m = 27.498
Mean Em_m = 2.017
Microphysics
  #/Liter
Max CON_FSSP = 28406.822
Mean CON_FSSP = 2043.964
Max Tot_con_1DC = 408.285
Mean Tot_con_1DC = 26.825
Max Tot_con_2DC = 568.507
Mean Tot_con_2DC = 34.109
Max 2DC_100_400 = 274.250
Mean 2DC_100_400 = 14.732
Max 2DC_400_1000 = 66.102
Mean 2DC_400_1000 = 3.846
Max 2DC_GT_1000 = 3.729
Mean 2DC_GT_1000 = 0.256
Location (x,y) ~ (10,20)
Storm Motion 4.4 m/s to the east, no real motion in the y direction

Brief Description

The was out in front of an electrically active part of the storm.

Case 2 (Times: 1718 - 1744)
Type of case lightning producing cell decays to debris
Complexity isolated cell but close to others
Convection convective
Electric field
  kV/m
Min Em_m = 0.053
Max Em_m = 29.863
Mean Em_m = 2.428
Microphysics
  #/Liter
Max CON_FSSP = 22805.119
Mean CON_FSSP = 2129.366
Max Tot_con_1DC = 282.384
Mean Tot_con_1DC = 26.756
Max Tot_con_2DC = 253.553
Mean Tot_con_2DC = 32.608
Max 2DC_100_400 = 116.918
Mean 2DC_100_400 = 14.728
Max 2DC_400_1000 = 39.247
Mean 2DC_400_1000 = 3.638
Max 2DC_GT_1000 = 2.606
Mean 2DC_GT_1000 = 0.305
Location (x,y) ~ (-10,20)
Storm Motion 1.5 m/s to the east, no discernable motion in the y direction.

Brief Description

This starts as cell electrically active at 1707 then decays to debris with weak fields.

 


Case 3 (Times: 1748 - 1752)
Type of case debris
Complexity complex
Convection not at time of pass
Electric field
  kV/m
Min Em_m = 0.338
Max Em_m = 0.386
Mean Em_m = 0.369
Microphysics
  #/Liter
Max CON_FSSP = 1.369
Mean CON_FSSP = 0.055
Max Tot_con_1DC = 0.000
Mean Tot_con_1DC = 0.000
Max Tot_con_2DC = 0.000
Mean Tot_con_2DC = 0.000
Max 2DC_100_400 = 0.000
Mean 2DC_100_400 = 0.000
Max 2DC_400_1000 = 0.000
Mean 2DC_400_1000 = 0.000
Max 2DC_GT_1000 = 0.000
Mean 2DC_GT_1000 = 0.000
Location (x,y) ~ (20,85)
Storm Motion 3.9 m/s to the east, no real motion in the y direction

Brief Description

This is debris from weak convection that apparently never produced lightning.

 


Case 4 (Times: 1756 - 1824)
Type of case complex debris very near complex convection
Complexity very complex
Convection yes, active
Electric field
  kV/m
Min Em_m = 0.099
Max Em_m = 58.318
Mean Em_m = 5.047
Microphysics
  #/Liter
Max CON_FSSP = 38912.281
Mean CON_FSSP = 1435.364
Max Tot_con_1DC = 76.100
Mean Tot_con_1DC = 11.633
Max Tot_con_2DC = 83.786
Mean Tot_con_2DC = 13.140
Max 2DC_100_400 = 34.685
Mean 2DC_100_400 = 5.135
Max 2DC_400_1000 = 15.039
Mean 2DC_400_1000 = 1.732
Max 2DC_GT_1000 = 1.872
Mean 2DC_GT_1000 = 0.199
Location (x,y) ~ (10,20)
Storm Motion 4.5 m/s to the east.

Brief Description

This is approximately the same position as Case 1. Given the eastward motion of the system, it is not the same cell. But it is on the eastern edge of a very complex system of convection. Apparently little or no wind shear.


Flight Summary: Flight 2 Ferry Flight (Non-Anvil Day)

Case 5 (Times: 2057 - 2110)
Type of case Wide spread cloud
Complexity complex
Convection yes, a lot
Electric field
  kV/m
Min Em_m = nxx
Max Em_m = xxx
Mean Em_m = xxx
Microphysics
  #/Liter
Max CON_FSSP = xxx
Mean CON_FSSP = xxx
Max Tot_con_1DC = xxx
Mean Tot_con_1DC = xxx
Max Tot_con_2DC = xxx
Mean Tot_con_2DC = xxx
Max 2DC_100_400 = xxx
Mean 2DC_100_400 = xxx
Max 2DC_400_1000 = xxx
Mean 2DC_400_1000 = xxx
Max 2DC_GT_1000 = xxx
Mean 2DC_GT_1000 = xxx
Location (x,y) ~ (0, -20)
Storm Motion 3.4 m/s to the east.

Brief Description

This was a ferry flight. Most of the microphysics instruments were not turned on during this time.

The storms on this day were a complex of convection that moved in from the west. At end of flight 1, the aircraft had to land at Vero Beach and wait for the lightning to stop over PAFB. The return Ferry Flight was at low altitude through stratiform precipitation.
The "Storm Motion" calculations are very rough estimates.







SYNTHESIS FOR JUNE 23, 2000 - ABFM

Investigator: None
[Not presented at a teleconference.]


The following summary is from the notes that Jim Dye and Eric Defer put together. Probably early in 2001 (before the May/June 2001 Field Campaign).

 

 

 

E fields reported in the summaries below are based on the old matrix for determination of the three components of the field. The new matrix provided in April 2001 reduces the negative values of Ez as much as 40 to 60%. So the values reported herein may be too large. Positions are reported herein as (X,Y) coordinates relative to the WSR74-C radar.

Th total concentrations of particles measured by the 2D-C probe are denoted as N30 (ie. concentration of particles >30 microns which is heavily weighted towards smaller particles). N1 refers to the concentration of particles >1mm size, ie. the larger particles. Radar plots were available for only a few of the last summaries we prepared (June 4, 6, and 11). For other days some of the realtime radar plots were utilized but need to be verified.

 

June 23

Flight from 1636 to 1910 made a few passes at 7.6 km in 2 decaying thunderstorms north of KSC and then flew in and near active cells while trying to land at Patrick AFB before diverting to Vero Beach. E field of +25 to –40 KV/m with large horizontal variations. The aircraft followed the E field decay to ~5 KV/m before the weak anvil disappeared.