Snodar: 2009 performance at Dome A, Antarctica
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abstract
Snodar is a high resolution acoustic radar designed specifically for profiling the atmospheric boundary layer on the high Antarctic plateau. Snodar profiles the atmospheric temperature structure function constant to a vertical resolution of 1 m or better with a minimum sample height of 8 m. The maximum sampling height is dependent on atmospheric conditions but is typically at least 100 m. Snodar uses a unique in-situ intensity calibration method that allows the instrument to be autonomously recalibrated throughout the year. The instrument is initially intensity calibrated against tower-mounted differential microthermal sensors. A calibration sphere is located in the near-field of the antenna to provide a fixed echo of known intensity, allowing the instrument to be continuously re-calibrated once deployed. This allows snow accumulation, transducer wear and system changes due to temperature to be monitored. Year-round power and communications are provided by the PLATO facility. This allows processed data to be downloaded every 6 hours while raw data is stored on-site for collection the following summer. Over 4 million processed samples have been downloaded through PLATO to date. We present signal attenuation from accumulation of snow and ice on Snodar's parabolic reflector during the 2009 at Dome A. 2010 SPIE.
Bonner, C. S., Ashley, M., Bradley, S. G., Cui, X., Feng, L., Gong, X., ... Zhu, Z.
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Bonner, Colin S||Ashley, Michael CB||Bradley, Stuart G||Cui, Xiangqun||Feng, LongLong||Gong, Xuefei||Lawrence, Jon S||Luong-Van, Daniel M||Shang, Zhaohui||Storey, John WV||Wang, Lifan||Yang, Huigen||Yang, Ji||Zhou, Xu||Zhu, Zhenxi
