Abstract View
A Miniaturized, Lower Cost, Cloud Condensation Nuclei Counter
ALEKSANDRA VOLKOVA, J. Alex Huffman, Donald R. Huffman, Ezra Levin, Gavin McMeeking, Matt Freer, Ben Swanson, Anna Hodshire, University of Denver
Abstract Number: 444
Working Group: Instrumentation and Methods
Abstract
The impacts of aerosols on cloud properties remains a major obstacle to better understanding Earth’s changing energy budget. Cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) have a potentially major impact on cloud droplet number and size, thereby affecting cloud radiative properties, cloud lifetime, and precipitation. Improving observational capabilities for airborne CCN measurements is required to advance understanding and extend current measurements into a wider geographic region, including under-sampled regions, and for longer time periods. There is also a need for smaller, lower-cost, and lightweight instruments capable of measuring CCN for use on rapidly advancing unmanned platforms, including unmanned aerial vehicles as well as tethered and free balloons. To address these needs, we are developing a simple, lower cost, low power consumption and small footprint CCN counter based on a miniaturized version of the DH Associates CCN counter. The mini-CCN counter, termed the Handix Scientific “CloudPuck”, is based on the well-established static diffusion chamber design but has been significantly improved to take advantage of developments in extremely low-cost digital cameras, lasers, mechanical hardware, electronics, computers, and image processing software. The CloudPuck prototype is radically reduced in size and weight from the currently commercially available CCN counters (approximately 6-inches cubed and < 500 g) and has performed initial proof-of-concept testing with size-selected aerosol of known composition. We will present results from tests designed to determine the ability of the instrument to operate on moving, airborne platforms, including large-scale motion and vibration tests. We also discuss results from a pilot study performed in and around the Storm Peak Laboratory in Steamboat Springs, CO to investigate its performance and examine patterns in CCN concentrations over an extended measurement period under real-world sampling conditions.