First ISCCP Regional Experiment (FIRE) Atlantic Stratocumulus Transition Experiment (CIRRUS 2) NASA ER-2 Cloud Lidar System Data

The First ISCCP Regional Experiments have been designed to improve data products and cloud/radiation parameterizations used in general circulation models (GCMs). Specifically, the goals of FIRE are (1) to improve the basic understanding of the interaction of physical processes in determining life cycles of cirrus and marine stratocumulus systems and the radiative properties of these clouds during their life cycles and (2) to investigate the interrelationships between the ISCCP data, GCM parameterizations, and higher space and time resolution cloud data. To-date, four intensive field-observation periods were planned and executed: a cirrus IFO (October 13 - November 2, 1986); a marine stratocumulus IFO off the southwestern coast of California (June 29 - July 20, 1987); a second cirrus IFO in southeastern Kansas (November 13 - December 7, 1991); and a second marine stratocumulus IFO in the eastern North Atlantic Ocean (June 1 - June 28, 1992). Each mission combined coordinated satellite, airborne, and surface observations with modeling studies to investigate the cloud properties and physical processes of the cloud systems. Operations Plan (1992). The Cloud Lidar System (CLS) instrument was flown aboard the NASA ER-2 airplane. This instrument was used to determine cloud altitudes. Information pertaining to the number of cloud layers detected; the heights of the boundaries for up to 5 cloud layers; geo-physical location information; and time were recorded. Four channels of data were recorded. The first channel recorded wavelengths at 532 nanometers in the parallel plane. The second channel recorded wavelengths of 532 nanometers in the perpendicular plane. The third channel recorded wavelengths of 1064 nanometers total. The forth channel was a linear amplifier which received the digitized signal from one of the three previously mentioned CLS detectors. The data are organized so that there is a single header record for the file. This header record is followed by a series of pairs of records.The first record of each pair contains the CLS calibrated data and the second record of the pair contains the CLS analyzed data.