Unmanned air sampling quadrocopter for studying boundary layer methane isotopy and vertical mixing processes – initial field test data, Zarnekow 2018 ...

• Main Authors: Pätzold, Falk, Krüger, Thomas, Nowak, Stefan, Damm, Ellen, Bärfuss, Konrad, Rausch, Thomas, Asmussen, Magnus Ole, Lampert, Astrid
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: PANGAEA 2019
• Subjects: air sample profile; airsampling quadrocopter; Drone; Methane isotopy; RPAS; UAS; UAV; Remotely piloted quadrocopter ALICE; Sea ice
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.1594/pangaea.907759; https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.907759

Methane is a very effective greenhouse gas, but the role of the Polar Regions in the methane budget and its sources there is subject to discussion. The sparse surface network data and satellite data indicate significant source regions above the polar oceans.The remotely piloted quadrocopter ALICE was developed for taking air samples to study methane isotopic composition related to different polar atmospheric boundary layer conditions above sea ice and open water (German Research Foundation, DFG, grant No. LA2907/8-1, DA 2907/5-1). Adapted to rough polar conditions the quadrocopter carries twelve 100 ml glass bottles for air sampling and sensors for air temperature, humidity, irradiation and surface temperature up to 1000 m above ground. The samples can be taken by opening the evacuated glass bottles at any point of the trajectory, at predefined positions or manually triggered by the operator. The quadrocopter is a tool to get vertical profiles of air samples easier than with other methods.The initially ...