KA-20251001a

KA-20251001a#

ec_under mpc melt_layer precip multi marine_sc alomar cirrus

Crew#

Job

Name

PI

Robert Oscar David

Instrument operator

Sorin Ghemulet

Instrument operator

Alex Vlad

EarthCARE target scenarios

Melting layer: Porpoising through melting layer over ocean.
Rain: Precipitating clouds over ocean.
Marine Sc: Vertical profiles including drizzle.
Complex multi-layer scenes: Multiple low cloud decks.

Flight summary

During the research flight on 1st October 2025, we targeted mixed-phase clouds, and specifically the melting layer between 0.9 and 3.6 km altitude underneath EarthCARE (orbit #7634C). We performed porpoising through the melting layer, covering temperatures between -6°C and +9°C and sampling liquid droplets, ice crystals, drizzle, rain and snow. After the EC leg, we climbed and sampled cirrus clouds North of Andenes, where the ground-based lidar at ALOMAR was sampling cirrus clouds throughout the EC overpass and the collocated airborne sampling.

Track#

../_images/KA-20251001a_7634C.png

Flight track for KA-20251001a.#

Flight path (dashed line) superimposed on the MSI-RGR-1C product on 1st October 2025. The ATLID ground track is shown in yellow, while the EC leg (for correlative observations) is shown as a continuous line.

Conditions#

Complex multi-layer cloud scene while we profiled through the freezing layer. Measured drizzle, rain and snow above and below the melting layer. At times it was hard to stay in cloud and to assess which flight level the cloud layer was at, but continued porpoising with a lot of in-cloud time. Afterwards we sampled cirrus North of Andenes.

Flight video#

Video cutting and editing in progress…

Events#

Time (UTC)

Comment

12:18

Takeoff Kiruna

13:53

Start ec_leg

14:08

EarthCARE overpass (orbit #7634C)

14:28

End ec_leg

~14:35-15:00

Cirrus in coordination with ALOMAR ground-based lidar

15:45

Landing Kiruna

Execution#

  • Takeoff KRN: 12:18 UTC (14:18 LT)

  • 13:22 UTC: descending down to WP1

  • 13:40 UTC: WP1

  • 13:51 UTC: intersecting line now

  • 13:53 UTC: climbing up to FL090, start ec_leg

  • 14:00 UTC: heading back down, second cloud layer down ahead

  • 14:14 UTC: descending towards warm cloud

  • 14:17 UTC: WPE

  • 14:23 UTC: heading up as approaching WP2

  • 14:28 UTC: WP2

  • Landing KRN: 15:45 UTC (17:45 LT)

Impressions#

  • heading towards WP1, clear sky, so no camera at start, other than side-view

  • 12:42 UTC: TAS231, -36°C, FL270

  • 12:54 UTC: TAS232, -35°C, FL270, clear as can be, glory in cloud deck near ground

  • 13:22 UTC: TAS231, -33°C, FL270

  • 13:24 UTC: TAS226, -31°C, FL250

  • 13:26 UTC: TAS218, -27°C, FL230, multi-layer situation

  • 13:27 UTC: TAS223, -24°C, FL220

  • 13:28 UTC: TAS223, -22°C, FL210, ice on probes, light bumps, lots of riming on B-Rs

  • 13:29 UTC: TAS220, -21°C, FL200

  • 13:30 UTC: TAS213, -18°C, FL190

  • 13:31 UTC: TAS213, -16°C, FL180

  • 13:32 UTC: TAS213, -15°C, FL170

  • 13:33 UTC: TAS212, -13°C, FL160, approaching cloud top

  • 13:34 UTC: TAS209, -12°C, FL150

  • 13:35 UTC: TAS208, -9°C, FL140

  • 13:36 UTC: FL135, in cloud at top, -1°C, glory at cloud top, multiple layers

  • 13:38 UTC: in cloud, down to FL120

  • 13:40 UTC: TAS198, -7°C, FL120

  • 13:42 UTC: TAS190, -5°C, FL110, in and out of cloud

  • 13:43 UTC: Stratocumulus in gap between cloud layers

  • 13:45 UTC: TAS185, 0°C, FL090

  • 13:47 UTC: TAS184, 1°C, FL080

  • 13:49 UTC: TAS183, 3°C, FL060, multiple cloud layers, in cloud again

  • 13:51 UTC: TAS181, 6°C, FL050

  • 13:52 UTC: TAS182, 6°C, FL040, drizzle

  • 13:53 UTC: TAS180, 7°C, FL030, 2DS-V looks stretched

  • 13:54 UTC: TAS171, 6°C, FL043, WP1 there we go!

  • 13:55 UTC: TAS172, 5°C, FL050, 2DS-V back

  • 13:56 UTC: TAS172, 3°C, FL060

  • 13:56 UTC: TAS177, 2°C, FL070

  • 13:57 UTC: TAS181, 0°C, FL080, out of cloud

  • 13:58 UTC: TAS185, -1°C, FL090

  • 13:59 UTC: TAS186, -3°C, FL100, through second cloud layer

  • 14:00 UTC: TAS201, -4°C, FL100, back in upper cloud

  • 14:01 UTC: TAS190, 0°C, FL090, in cloud again, drizzle

  • 14:02 UTC: TAS190, 0°C, FL088

  • 14:03 UTC: TAS188, 2°C, FL068, another cloud layer gap

  • 14:04 UTC: TAS189, 4°C, FL060

  • 14:05 UTC: TAS190, 6°C, FL050, another cloud layer

  • 14:06 UTC: TAS179, 6°C, FL040, in between cloud layers

  • 14:07 UTC: TAS180, 9°C, FL030, could not reach lowest layer

  • 14:08 UTC: EC meet in between cloud layers, climbing up

  • 14:08 UTC: TAS170, 7°C, FL040, above 2nd cloud layer

  • 14:09 UTC: TAS170, 6°C, FL050

  • 14:10 UTC: TAS175, 3°C, FL060, in cloud again

  • 14:11 UTC: TAS177, 2°C, FL070, seeder cloud above, in betwen cloud layer

  • 14:12 UTC: TAS181, 2°C, FL080

  • 14:12 UTC: TAS181, 1°C, FL090, dendrites

  • 14:13 UTC: TAS195, -1°C, FL100, could not reach ice cloud above but some pristine dendrites falling from above

  • 14:14 UTC: TAS193, 0°C, FL090, descending towards warm cloud

  • 14:15 UTC: TAS185, 2°C, FL080

  • 14:16 UTC: TAS180, 2°C, FL070

  • 14:17 UTC: TAS185, 3°C, FL060, in cloud

  • 14:18 UTC: TAS174, 4°C, FL050, in between cloud layer

  • 14:19 UTC: TAS175, 7°C, FL040

  • 14:21 UTC: TAS182, 9°C, FL030, low cloud basically disappearing and just sampled the top

  • 14:22 UTC: TAS162, 7°C, FL040, in cloud

  • 14:22 UTC: TAS162, 9°C, FL050, out of cloud

  • 14:23 UTC: TAS163, 3°C, FL060

  • 14:23 UTC: TAS166, 2°C, FL070

  • 14:24 UTC: TAS167, 2°C, FL080

  • 14:25 UTC: TAS174, 1°C, FL090

  • 14:26 UTC: TAS176, -2°C, FL100

  • 14:27 UTC: TAS180, -6°C, FL120, dendrites entering another cloud layer soon

  • 14:28 UTC: TAS185, -7°C, FL130, MPC found, lots of liquid and just a bit of ice, out of cloud @FL140

  • 14:29 UTC: TAS186, -10°C, FL140, halo from cirrus above

  • 14:30 UTC: TAS191, -10°C, FL150

  • 14:31 UTC: TAS194, -11°C, FL160

  • 14:32 UTC: TAS196, -13°C, FL170

  • 14:32 UTC: TAS199, -15°C, FL180

  • 14:33 UTC: TAS204, -17°C, FL190

  • 14:34 UTC: TAS207, -18°C, FL200, small ice, cirrus fallout

  • 14:36 UTC: TAS210, -20°C, FL210

  • 14:37 UTC: TAS213, -22°C, FL220

  • 14:38 UTC: TAS217, -25°C, FL230, sublimating ice looks round a bit

  • 14:39 UTC: TAS220, -27°C, FL240

  • 14:41 UTC: TAS223, -28°C, FL250, B-Rs low concentration of ice

  • 14:43 UTC: TAS222, -31°C, FL260

  • 14:44 UTC: TAS234, -33°C, FL270, side planes

  • 14:46 UTC: approach: thicker cirrus, Halo, sundogs

  • 14:51 UTC: in between what seem to be 2 cirrus layers

  • 14:52 UTC: TAS232, -34°C

  • 14:54 UTC: TAS232, B-Rs, no camera…put battery in again (14:56 UTC)

  • 15:00 UTC: TAS232, -34°C

  • 15:03 UTC: mission end, no more cirrus

Instrument status & quicklooks#

Instrument

Operational

Comment

FCDP

✅

None

2D-S

✅

None

CPI

❌

camera connection issue

CAS-DPOL

❌

CAPS computer failure

CIP

❌

CAPS computer failure

LWC Hotwire

❌

CAPS computer failure

Gopros

✅

None

Seeder-feeder situation, photo taken at 14:11 UTC, right after EC overpass.

Photo of cloud situation taken 13:26 UTC.

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