Antarctic Cloud Backscatter Profiles from Ceilometer, 2015-2016

A Vaisala CL51 ceilometer deployed aboard the Aurora Australis during the 2015-2016 season provides vertical profiles of cloud backscatter, cloud base height, and instrument status. The data covers voyages from 19 October 2015 to 22 February 2016, with one netCDF file per hour at a resolution of 10 meters vertically and 6 seconds temporally. Data was converted into netCDF files by Peter Kuma at the University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand.

Use Cases

• Analyzing cloud vertical structure and evolution based on backscatter profiles.
• Validating satellite or model-derived cloud base height estimates.
• Studying seasonal cloud patterns over the Southern Ocean and Antarctic region.
• Investigating instrument performance and data quality based on status information.

Strengths

• High temporal resolution with data recorded every 6 seconds.
• High vertical resolution of 10 meters for detailed cloud profiling.
• Continuous coverage over a defined season from October 2015 to February 2016.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Last updated 2016-02-22 23:59:59.999000; freshness should be verified.

Provenance

Source

University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand; data processed by Peter Kuma.

Collection Method

Deployed aboard the Aurora Australis research vessel using a Vaisala CL51 ceilometer.

Time Range

19 October 2015 – 22 February 2016

Freshness

Last updated 2016-02-22 23:59:59.999000

Geography

Southern Ocean and Antarctic region, along the voyages of the Aurora Australis.