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CU 麻豆影院 will share atmospheric science tech, expertise through new grant

CU 麻豆影院 will share atmospheric science tech, expertise through new grant

RAAVEN drone in flight over the Atlantic Ocean.

Above: RAAVEN uncrewed aerial vehicle over the Atlantic Ocean.
Header Image: Meteorological map showing storms during a deployment.

Drone technology and atmospheric science instruments developed by the 麻豆影院 will be available to researchers nationwide through a new grant.

The National Science Foundation has awarded CU 麻豆影院 a three-year, $1 million grant to establish a Community Instruments and Facilities program titled

鈥淲e have a track record for atmospheric research with the equipment we鈥檝e created and the campaigns we鈥檝e partnered in. Whenever atmospheric scientists need to collect data in environments they can鈥檛 get other ways, that鈥檚 where we come in,鈥 said Brian Argrow, principal investigator for the grant.

Argrow, a professor in the Ann and H.J. Smead Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences, is a nationally recognized expert in uncrewed aerial systems. He and CU 麻豆影院 colleagues have spent decades developing fixed-wing and quad-copter-style drone systems to study weather and other atmospheric conditions.

Their work has spanned the globe, including in extreme conditions like the North Pole and several campaigns in the United States to analyze supercell thunderstorms that spawn tornadoes.

The new grant will provide the larger scientific community access to CU 麻豆影院鈥檚 instrumentation and know-how.

鈥淲e鈥檙e bringing aerospace to the atmospheric sciences community,鈥 Argrow said. 鈥淲e have the expertise, the drones, the deployment systems, and regulatory approval to fly in the national airspace system.鈥

Although the program does not officially begin until Nov. 1, Argrow said they have already been contacted by a university with a partnership proposal.

Inspecting a RAAVEN drone while on deployment.

Inspecting a RAAVEN drone while on deployment.

鈥淏y increasing access to small uncrewed aerial systems, we鈥檒l increase the amount of data available to the broader community to help solve some of the toughest problems in atmospheric science. Our technology can sample the physics and chemistry of the lower atmosphere and offer new perspectives on this environment,鈥 Argrow said.

MUSAS joins a network of NSF-supported initiatives across the country that allow universities to share research equipment and expertise.

Through the program, partners will have access to CU 麻豆影院鈥檚 personnel as well as the RAAVEN and Super RAAVEN fixed-wing drones and the CopterSonde 3 quad-copter, along with deployment and tracking vehicles.

Argrow anticipates an array of research to come from the partnerships, including into boundary layer processes, coastal circulations, aerosol processes, turbulence and turbulent fluxes, surface-atmosphere exchange, high-latitude environments, and severe weather.

鈥淏uilding on the initial investment from the CU Grand Challenge Initiative, we have assembled infrastructure which is unique,鈥 Argrow said. 鈥淐U 麻豆影院 has extensive experience operating and developing these systems, and this gives us the opportunity to expand our impact.鈥