Airborne Platforms to Advance NASA Earth System Science Priorities Assessing the Future Need for a Large Aircraft (2021) / Chapter Skim
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6 Recommendations for the Future Need of a Large Aircraft
6 Recommendations for the Future Need of a Large Aircraft
Pages 137-146
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From page 137... ...
The DC-8 has served several vital roles: providing crucial observations for Earth system science during more than 140 campaigns, serving as a testbed for satellite instrument development and means for satellite instrument calibration, and promoting NASA's mission through public outreach and workforce training and development. It has also been able to meet unanticipated evolving needs in different areas of Earth system science because of its unique combination of capabilities and its fundamental flexibility.
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From page 138... ...
Recommendation 1: NASA should acquire, maintain, and operate a large aircraft as part of its aircraft fleet in order to address priority questions developed for the 2017 Earth Science and Applications from Space Decadal Survey and to support satellite calibration and validation, computer model testing, instrument development, and workforce training and development. Across the priority science areas discussed in this report, most have identified ESAS questions that could be best addressed using a large aircraft that has the unique combination of long duration, heavy lift, multiple ports, and cruising ability at all altitudes from Earth's PBL up to about 12 km.
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From page 139... ...
Second, only a large platform can enable the simultaneous measurements of atmospheric composition and state variables necessary to connect the more limited spaceborne observations to the chemical transport and climate models that are used to relate the observations to the atmospheric science problems being addressed. Third, the advances in spaceborne atmospheric observations for atmospheric composition, state, and spatial resolution will require airborne observations of even more atmospheric constituents and state variables that these new satellites will be able to retrieve.
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From page 140... ...
Current comprehensive payloads on the DC-8 to meet research goals already sometimes exceed the weight capacity, and, even with decreasing instrument weights, payloads to meet the goals of some science areas with growing suites of instrumentation and increasingly interdisciplinary research in the future are likely to require similar or greater weight capacities. Flight duration of on the order of 12 hours, depending on payload, altitude, and weather conditions.
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From page 141... ...
The new large aircraft should match or improve upon the DC-8 for those characteristics deemed important for accomplishing future Earth system science research goals including those that may not be on this list. Recommendation 3: NASA should continue operating a diverse array of airborne platforms in addition to a large aircraft, as part of the broader government, university, and commercial fleet, in order to meet the evolving airborne needs for advancing Earth system science research.
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From page 142... ...
are already being deployed routinely for a variety of Earth system science studies, including observations of the water and energy cycles, ecological system changes, Arctic ice, and volcanic fuming. Although current flight restrictions limit UAS use, particularly over land, their use is likely to expand as UAS and instrument technologies advance on several fronts: more sophisticated adaptive and automated flight control; greater UAS payload capacity; smaller, lighter, more power efficient, and more automated instrumentation; and a growing diversity of designs to meet specific needs.
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From page 143... ...
By proactively seeking proposals involving innovative approaches for using a large aircraft to accomplish interdisciplinary research and surface remote sensing research, in addition to new disciplinary research, NASA will increase the impact that a large airborne aircraft can have on achieving its Earth system science research goals. Recommendation 5: NASA is encouraged to build on the training and outreach opportunities it has established using the DC-8 and use a future large aircraft to expand its efforts to attract, develop, and train the next-generation workforce, with particular emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion, to foster capacity to conduct international Earth system science research, and to inform the public.
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From page 144... ...
These methods include training field program participants to adhere to an inclusive code of conduct, enabling participation in fieldwork that is balanced with demands at home, and adjusting approaches to addressing diversity, equity, and inclusion based on information gained from tracking outcomes and creating accountability to meet diversity goals. Recommendation 6: NASA is encouraged to continue building on its use of the large aircraft capacity to enable scientists with next-generation measurement concepts, especially early career scientists, to become active participants in Earth system science research, even beyond airborne science research.
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From page 145... ...
Recommendations for the Future Need of a Large Aircraft 145 opportunities to plan flights and serve as flight mission scientists provides the mentorship they need to emerge as leaders in future Earth system science research, including NASA airborne science research. Acquiring a large airborne platform as the DC8 is retired is an essential part of these efforts.
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