Balloon-borne instruments have also observed all other key chemical species,
including nitrogen oxides, hydroxyl radicals, and an array of source and trace gases.
These data are used both to initialize and also to assess photochemical models.
Measurements made by the Observations of the Middle Stratosphere (OMS)
payload, as part of the NASA Stratospheric Tracers of Atmospheric Transport
(STRAT) project, extended the in-situ aircraft measurements to much higher altitudes. This yielded an improved understanding of the dynamical processes transporting gases across the tropopause into the upper atmosphere, and also improved
our estimates of the lifetimes of anthropogenic pollutants once they have entered
the stratosphere.
Today, balloons are used in a comprehensive strategy of ground, suborbital, and
space observations to advance understanding of atmospheric composition. They
complement Earth observing satellites by providing validation, measurements of
species that are not being done from satellites, and measurements at finer spatial
and temporal scales than can be done from space.
Funding provided by the NASA Supporting Research and Technology, Research
and Analysis (SR&T/R&A) program enabled prototyping of optics and detectors
designed to extend X-ray and gamma-ray measurements to higher energies. The
following are examples of balloon payloads in support of atmospheric science.
The Asian Tropopause Aerosol Layer (ATAL)
This layer of the atmosphere was discovered in 2011 by Jean Paul Vernier of the
National Institute of Aerospace based near the NASA Langley Research Center,
VA. It extends all the way from western China to the eastern Mediterranean Sea.
Observations provided by the joint US-French Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared
Pathfinder Satellite Observation (CALIPSO) satellite discovered the presence of
aerosols occurring frequently in the upper troposphere during the summer Asian
monsoon.
Data from the Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment (SAGE) II instrument
on the Earth Radiation Budget Satellite (ERBS) had earlier given clues of such a
phenomenon. In the late 1990’s ground-based lidar in Lhasa, Tibet had noticed a
potential aerosol layer 10 to 12 miles above, and this was confirmed by multiple
balloon-borne measurements taken over the Tibetan Plateau.
As the atmospheric lifetime of particles in the stratosphere is much longer than
in the troposphere, further balloon launches are being made to better understand
how particles are distributed across the troposphere and the stratosphere.
Hyper Spectral Imager for Climate Science (HySICS)
The HySICS Instrument Incubator Project made two scientific balloon launches
carrying a spectrometer capable of measuring outgoing Earth-reflected radiation
with unprecedented accuracy relative to incident sunlight. The gondola with two
176 Accomplishments
including nitrogen oxides, hydroxyl radicals, and an array of source and trace gases.
These data are used both to initialize and also to assess photochemical models.
Measurements made by the Observations of the Middle Stratosphere (OMS)
payload, as part of the NASA Stratospheric Tracers of Atmospheric Transport
(STRAT) project, extended the in-situ aircraft measurements to much higher altitudes. This yielded an improved understanding of the dynamical processes transporting gases across the tropopause into the upper atmosphere, and also improved
our estimates of the lifetimes of anthropogenic pollutants once they have entered
the stratosphere.
Today, balloons are used in a comprehensive strategy of ground, suborbital, and
space observations to advance understanding of atmospheric composition. They
complement Earth observing satellites by providing validation, measurements of
species that are not being done from satellites, and measurements at finer spatial
and temporal scales than can be done from space.
Funding provided by the NASA Supporting Research and Technology, Research
and Analysis (SR&T/R&A) program enabled prototyping of optics and detectors
designed to extend X-ray and gamma-ray measurements to higher energies. The
following are examples of balloon payloads in support of atmospheric science.
The Asian Tropopause Aerosol Layer (ATAL)
This layer of the atmosphere was discovered in 2011 by Jean Paul Vernier of the
National Institute of Aerospace based near the NASA Langley Research Center,
VA. It extends all the way from western China to the eastern Mediterranean Sea.
Observations provided by the joint US-French Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared
Pathfinder Satellite Observation (CALIPSO) satellite discovered the presence of
aerosols occurring frequently in the upper troposphere during the summer Asian
monsoon.
Data from the Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment (SAGE) II instrument
on the Earth Radiation Budget Satellite (ERBS) had earlier given clues of such a
phenomenon. In the late 1990’s ground-based lidar in Lhasa, Tibet had noticed a
potential aerosol layer 10 to 12 miles above, and this was confirmed by multiple
balloon-borne measurements taken over the Tibetan Plateau.
As the atmospheric lifetime of particles in the stratosphere is much longer than
in the troposphere, further balloon launches are being made to better understand
how particles are distributed across the troposphere and the stratosphere.
Hyper Spectral Imager for Climate Science (HySICS)
The HySICS Instrument Incubator Project made two scientific balloon launches
carrying a spectrometer capable of measuring outgoing Earth-reflected radiation
with unprecedented accuracy relative to incident sunlight. The gondola with two
176 Accomplishments