ACES CONTINUOUS DATA V1

During August, 2002, ACES researchers conducted overflights of thunderstorms over the southwestern corner of Florida. For the first time in NASA research, an uninhabited aerial vehicle (UAV) named ALTUS was used to collect cloud electrification data.

Carrying field mills, optical sensors, electric field sensors and other instruments, ALTUS allowed scientists to collect cloudelectrification data for the first time from above the storm, from its birth through dissipation. This experiment allowed scientists to achieve the dual goals of gathering weather data safely and testing new aircraft technology. This dataset consists of data collected from seven instruments: the Slow/Fast antenna, Electric Field Mill, Dual Optical Pulse Sensor, Searchcoil Magnetometer, Accelerometers, Gerdien Conductivity Probe, and the Fluxgate Magnetometer.