Tag: Airborne Science

High-Altitude ER-2 Flights Get Down-to-Earth Data

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3 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) Francisco Rodriguez (aircraft mechanic) services liquid oxygen or LOX on the ER-2 during the Geological Earth Mapping Experiment (GEMx) research project. Experts like Rodriguez sustain a high standard of safety on airborne science aircraft like the ER-2 and science missions like GEMx. The ER-2 is based out of NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. NASA/Steve Freeman Operating at altitudes above 99% of the Earth’s atmosphere, NASA’s ER-2 aircraft is the agency’s highest-flying airborne science platform. With its…

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NASA Earth Scientists Take Flight, Set Sail to Verify PACE Satellite Data

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5 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) More than 100 scientists will participate in a field campaign involving a research vessel and two aircraft this month to verify the accuracy of data collected by NASA’s new PACE satellite: the Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem mission. The process of data validation includes researchers comparing PACE data with data collected by similar, Earth-based instruments to ensure the measurements match up. Since the mission’s Feb. 8, 2024 launch, scientists around the world have successfully completed several data validation campaigns; the…

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NASA Returns to Arctic Studying Summer Sea Ice Melt

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5 Min Read NASA Returns to Arctic Studying Summer Sea Ice Melt NASA's Gulfstream III aircraft taxis on the runway at Pituffik Space Base as it begins one of its daily science flights for the ARCSIX mission. Credits: NASA/Gary Banziger What happens in the Arctic doesn’t stay in the Arctic, and a new NASA mission is helping improve data modeling and increasing our understanding of Earth’s rapidly changing climate. Changing ice, ocean, and atmospheric conditions in the northernmost part of Earth have a large impact on the entire planet. That’s…

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NASA-Led Mission to Map Air Pollution Over Both U.S. Coasts

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2 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) This summer between June 17 and July 2, NASA will fly aircraft over Baltimore, Philadelphia, parts of Virginia, and California to collect data on air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions.   The campaign supports the NASA Student Airborne Research Program for undergraduate interns. Two NASA aircraft, including the P-3 shown here, will be flying over Baltimore, Philadelphia, Virginia and California between June 17 and July 2, to collect data on air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions. Credit: (NASA/ Zavaleta)…

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NASA’s DC-8 Completes Final Mission, Set to Retire

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2 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) The DC-8 aircraft returned to NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center Building 703 in Palmdale, California, on April 1, 2024, after completing its final mission supporting Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality (ASIA-AQ). The aircraft and crew were welcomed back with a celebratory water salute by the U.S. Air Force Plant 42 Fire Department. NASA/Steve Freeman  After 37 years of successful airborne science missions, NASA’s DC-8 aircraft completed its final mission and returned to the agency’s Armstrong Flight…

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Langley Celebrates Women’s History Month: The Langley ASIA-AQ Team

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13 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) In honor of Women’s History Month, we caught up with the ASIA-AQ team on the other side of the Earth and asked the women from Langley about their inspirations and challenges as scientists. The ASIA-AQ (Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality) mission is an international cooperative field study designed to address local air quality challenges. ASIA-AQ will contribute to improving the integration of satellite observations with existing air quality ground monitoring and modeling efforts across Asia. Langley’s…

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Contributions of the DC-8 to Earth System Science at NASA: A Workshop

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Call for Papers Date: August 13–14, 2024Location: Washington, D.C. Jointly organized by the NASA History Office and the Earth Science Division, this workshop seeks to document the important contributions of airborne campaigns implemented on NASA’s DC-8 Airborne Science Laboratory. The workshop will be a combination of keynote talks, panel discussions, and roundtables. The intention is to publish an anthology of selected papers of key presentations. NASA’s DC-8 aircraft recently completed nearly four decades of service to NASA with its retirement in early 2024 following the completion of the ASIA-AQ campaign. …

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NASA Helps Study One of the World’s Most Diverse Ecosystems

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Researchers with the BioSCape campaign collect vegetation data from the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. The field work, which took place in October and November, was part of an international collaboration that could help inform the capabilities of future satellite missions aimed at studying plants and animals. Adam Wilson NASA satellite and airborne tools aid an international team studying biodiversity on land and in the water around South Africa. An international team of researchers spent October and November 2023 in the field studying one of the world’s most…

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