Research Projects
 |
SPEC Scientists, engineers and technicians have been involved in over 100 research projects over the past 30 years. These are often international field campaigns involving U.S. and other government agencies and may include up to 150 scientists, engineers, technicians and students from universities and government labs around the world. SPEC is often the only private company participating in these projects. Below we show the logos from a few of these projects, give a brief description of the company’s involvement and list some relevant publications. |
The Secondary Production of Ice in Cumulus Experiment (SPICULE) was staged from the Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport in Broomfield, Colorado from 4 – 30 June 2021. The National Science Foundation (NSF) Gulfstream V (GV) operated by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and the SPEC Learjet 35A flew closely coordinated missions in cumulus congestus clouds to measurement the effects of a secondary ice process (SIP). Twelve missions were conducted in Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas. The GV predominantly measured aerosols below cloud base and made radar and in situ cloud measurements up to about the 0 °C level while the Learjet made repeated cloud penetrations from 0 °C to the – 20 °C level. Ice nucleating particles (INPs) were measured by instruments provided by Colorado State University and Environment Change and Climate Canada provided an up/down Ka-Band radar on the Learjet. Unique measurements of cloud properties showed how the effects of cloud base temperature and aerosol properrties influenced SIP via the fragmentation of freezing drops. An example of radar and microphysical measurements from the Learjet are shown below.
The NASA Cloud, Aerosol and Monsoon Processes Philippines Experiment (CAMP2Ex) was staged from Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines. The project is a response to the need to deconvolute the fields of tropical meteorology and aerosol science at the meso-b to cloud level. The goals of CAMP2Ex were to:
Examine how aerosol particle concentration and composition affect the optical and microphysical properties of shallow cumulous congestus clouds; and how, ultimately, these effects relate to the transition from shallower to deeper convection.
Study how spatially inhomogeneous and changing aerosol and cloud fields impact three-dimensional heating rates and fluxes, and determine the extent to which three dimensional effects may feedback into the evolution of the aerosol, cloud, and precipitation fields.
Determine the meteorological features that are the most influential in regulating the distribution of aerosol particles throughout the regional atmosphere and, ultimately, aerosol lifecycle, and ascertain the extent to which aerosol-cloud interactions studies are confounded and/or modulated by co-varying meteorology.
The NASA Earth Science Division P-3 research aircraft and the SPEC, Inc. Lear Jet 35A flew 12 missions over the Philippine and South China Seas during the period 20 August to 10 October 2019. The aircraft operated in close coordination studying the effects of aerosols on tropical cumulus clouds in clean and polluted atmospheres. The Learjet focused on in situ measurements of cloud-particle microphysics and secondary ice production while the P-3 made measurements of aerosols and used remote sensors to retrieve cloud properties.
UAE 4th Cycle Award: Selected out of 81 international research proposals that included 378 scientists and researchers affiliated with 159 research institutes from 37 countries on 5 continents, SPEC Inc. is the first institution to receive a 2nd UAE Research Program for Rain Enhancement Science (UAEREP) award in January, 2021. The 1st award was given to SPEC in 2017 during the 2nd Cycle UAEREP program. Under the 4th Cycle award, SPEC will build on results obtained from its 2nd Cycle 2019 field project in the UAE conducted with its Learjet research aircraft. Data collected from the previous field campaign led to three journal publications that describe a natural secondary ice process (SIP) that can lead to rain enhancement through hygroscopic seeding at cloud base. SPEC will return in 2023 with its Learjet research aircraft and join the NCM King Air to investigate the effects of seeding with nano-material coated salt. Joining SPEC in the 4th Cycle award are two former 2nd Cycle awardees, the Finnish Meteorology Institute (FMI) and the University of Reading (UoR). FMI will continue numerical modeling studies and include the effects of the SIP to determine the degree of rain enhancement on the ground. UoR will continue its research on a miniature electrical coronoa emitter that is intended to coagulate subcloud aerosols and improve hygroscopic seeding with nano materials at cloud base. See presentation slides.
For more details, click here.
