ACTIVATE Falcon Aircraft Merge Data: In-Situ Atmospheric Measurements

150 coordinated flights over the western North Atlantic from 2020-2022 provide in-situ measurements of aerosol, cloud properties, and atmospheric state from the HU-25 Falcon aircraft. The data supports the study of marine boundary layer clouds, which cover more than 45% of the ocean surface, and their interactions with aerosols and meteorology. The project's observing strategy targeted the shallow cumulus cloud regime using Statistical Survey and Process Study flight patterns.

Use Cases

• Characterizing aerosol-cloud-meteorology interactions based on detailed in-situ measurements of aerosol and cloud properties.
• Analyzing pollution traces and airmass classification using onboard trace gas measurements.
• Studying the net cooling effect of marine boundary layer clouds using coordinated remote sensing and in-situ flight data.
• Validating climate and weather models with observations from a broad range of aerosol and weather conditions over the western Atlantic.

Strengths

• Data originates from a 5-year NASA Earth-Venture Sub-Orbital (EVS-3) field campaign, indicating a structured scientific mission.
• Covers a specific, globally relevant region (western North Atlantic) with 150 coordinated flights over six deployments.
• Integrates multiple measurement types, including in-situ aerosol, cloud properties, atmospheric state, and trace gases from a dedicated aircraft platform.

Limitations

• Column names and detailed schema are not provided in the available metadata, limiting immediate usability.
• Conflicting 'last updated' dates exist between sources (2026-03-13 on Data.gov vs. 2022-06-30 on NASA Earthdata).
• Specific file size and row counts are unknown, making it difficult to assess the dataset's scale.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Collection Method

Data collected onboard the HU-25 Falcon aircraft during the ACTIVATE project, with pre-generated merge data files.

Time Range

2020-2022

Freshness

2026-03-13 (most recent update reported on Data.gov)

Geography

Western North Atlantic Ocean