Lidar Atmospheric Sensing Experiment (LASE) data from the 1998 Convection and Moisture Experiment (CAMEX-3) campaign. The dataset contains airborne DIAL system measurements of water vapor and aerosol profiles. It was collected by NASA's LARC_ASDC organization during the study of Hurricanes Bonnie, Danielle, Earl, and Georges.
Use Cases
- Assimilate water vapor profile measurements into numerical weather prediction models to improve hurricane intensity forecasts.
- Analyze aerosol profile data alongside water vapor to study their role in hurricane genesis and intensification processes.
- Validate and fill spatial gaps in radiosonde observations using the high-resolution LASE atmospheric profiles.
- Characterize the pre-storm environment and inner-core structure of specific hurricanes like Bonnie and Georges using time-series lidar data.
Strengths
- Data collected during a dedicated 7-week field campaign (6 August - 23 September, 1998) targeting multiple hurricanes.
- Provides high spatial and temporal resolution profiles for atmospheric water vapor and aerosols, filling sonde data voids.
Limitations
- Data is temporally stale, with the last update in September 1998, limiting modern climate change analysis.
- Sample size and specific row/column counts are unknown, making reproducibility and scaling difficult.
- Geographic scope is biased to the Atlantic basin and specific flight paths from Patrick Air Force Base, Florida.
Provenance
- Source
- NASA Langley Research Center Atmospheric Science Data Center (LARC_ASDC).
- Collection Method
- Airborne measurements from the autonomous LASE DIAL (Differential Absorption Lidar) instrument.
- Time Range
- 6 August 1998 to 23 September 1998.
- Freshness
- 1998-09-23
- Geography
- Atlantic Ocean regions, focused on hurricane tracks, based from Patrick Air Force Base, Florida.