Since the discovery by NRL scientists of direct injection of forest fire smoke into the lower stratosphere by pyro-cumulonimbus (so-called pyroCb) convection, several new and exciting avenues of research have opened up. NRL’s expertise in satellite remote sensing, aerosol phenomenology, and meteorology is being used in studies that include analysis of nadir imaging satellites (e.g., GOES, AVHRR, MODIS, MISR, and NPOESS), unifying diverse satellite products (e.g., aerosol index from TOMS and OMI, profiles of aerosol extinction and water vapor by POAM), and experimenting with new satellite sources such as lidar (CALIPSO) and radar (Cloudsat). We seek to tap historical satellite and meteorological data sets as well as to investigate unfolding events of pyroconvection and related eruptive modes such as volcanoes.

The upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS) is a region of the Earth’s atmosphere thought to be crucial to our understanding of circulation, climate, and chemistry yet is poorly characterized. One reason is that observations have been notoriously sparse in the UTLS. However, sampling of the UTLS by satellites is improving and has lead to new discoveries/insights. NRL has been on the leading edge of satellite-data interpretation. In particular, there is a new focus on blending profiles of constituents such as water vapor, ozone, and aerosols in the UTLS with nadir-viewer sensitivity to clouds, aerosols, water vapor, and carbon monoxide, and oxides of nitrogen. Satellite data analysis will be combined with meteorological data to develop new and improved understanding of processes affecting the UTLS and the importance of these processes on climate.

 

key words

Circulation; Forest fire smoke; Lidar; Lower stratosphere; PyroCb convection; Radar; Remote sensing; Satellite; Upper troposphere;

Citizenship:  Open to U.S. citizens and permanent residents

Level:  Open to Postdoctoral applicants