2008 Annual Report - NASA Airborne Science Program

gather cosmic dust particles from Earth’s
stratosphere, which are examined and
cataloged, and then made available to the
scientific community for research (see p. 33).
The ER-2 flew 5 flights totaling 39.9 flight
hours.
In late May, the MODIS/ASTER Airborne
Simulator (MASTER) sensor was uploaded
into ER-2 806 and flew two calibration flights
totaling 8 hours. The second flight included
a satellite overpass run. The Airborne Visible
and Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS)
sensor was flown as piggyback during the
MASTER flights.
Starting in June, ER-2 806 flew a series
of science flights, a sensor calibration and
checkout flight out of Edwards, AFB, totaling
15.1 flight hours. MASTER remained installed
as a piggyback for most local flights. Science
flights included gathering data over the Santa
Monica Mountains in southern California
to examine the relationships between
hyperspectral indices, live fuel moisture, and
soil moisture. Also, data was gathered over
central and southern California to establish
the feasibility of mapping methane emissions
in the lower boundary layer from natural
and anthropogenic sources, and to use
quantitative estimates of column methane to
estimate flux rates and, through repeat flights,
establish spatial and temporal variation in
methane emissions.
In late June, the ER-2 809 deployed to
Westover ARB, in Chicopee, MA, in
support of the Westover-AVIRIS campaign
for flights over Nebraska, Minnesota,
Wisconsin, Michigan and Maryland. The
AVIRIS flights were conducted to gather
data and characterize forest functional types
by canopy-based measurement of three
key functional traits: cell structure, shade
tolerance, and recalcitrance. As a part of
the flight series, science flights were also
conducted over sites in British Columbia,
Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and
Ontario, Canada. Data will also be used
to investigate forest growth, carbon cycling
and the interaction between ecosystems
and climate. During the Westover-AVIRIS
campaign the ER-2 809 flew 13 flights
totaling 77.6 flight hours.
To reduce logistic support requirements for
aircraft deployments, the UHF, VHF and HF
ground radio units were repackaged into a
new rack, thus reducing it from a two-rack
configuration to a single rack system. The
single rack configuration reduces deployment
logistics by one box.
The ER-2 project supported several
education and outreach events by providing
a presentation and demonstration of the high
altitude pressure suit. Presentations were
made at local schools in the Antelope Valley
and participated in recruitment efforts at
the California State University at Northridge
career fair. Also, we supported the NASA
Headquarters booth at the Albuquerque
International Balloon Fiesta in New Mexico.
In fiscal year 2009, the ER-2 operations will
be relocated from DFRC to the new DAOF
facility in Palmdale. This move, along with
efforts to share infrastructure with other
projects, will allow the ER-2 to continue its
on-going cost control measures.
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