Highlights Inside

· Weather Report - Same Old, Same Old · Next Met./Aircraft Planning Briefing 5:00 PM Saturday · TexAQS 2000 Airforce All Up Today - Down Tomorrow · Participants List - To T or not to T, that is the question… · NASA Thermal Mapping · Thought for the Day - If I had my life to live over…

The TexAQS 2000 Field Study Newsletter Issue 18 The Daily Plan-It September 1, 2000

Our Cornucopia of Air Quality Riches Runneth Over! (167 ppbv) from 3 to 4 PM. In all, ten although there should be increasing Houston area monitoring sites cloudiness as the weekend progresses. CapRock Building Locks recorded preliminary hourly levels in A low probability of precipitation Down excess of 120 ppbv. So, compared to continues throughout the weekend the previous day, the levels were not so with the highest probability (15%) on By the time you read this the high - 168 vs. 199 ppbv hourly average afternoon. CapRock Building will be locked - but there were ten stations exceeding down for the Labor Day weekend. 120 ppbv yesterday as opposed to Electra N308D You will need to use your key-code to seven the day before. gain access to the CapRock building The Electra and G-1 flew an The high pressure ridge that has intercomparison . Following the and keys to our office suite from 6:00 fostered so many ideal air quality study PM Friday (September intercomparison, the Electra is flying 1st) through 7:00 AM an east-to-west stack with Tuesday (September 5th). north-south oriented legs beginning west of Weather Wonders Houston and proceeding east over and across TAMU’s Stephanie downtown, the ship Naumann provided the channel and towards weather forecast today Beaumont/Port Arthur bringing a certain amount tracking the east- of class to what otherwise northeastward moving would have been a urban plume. common mob scene. The Electra is planning Today begins with a down day Saturday but relatively more elevated will be available on background ozone levels Sunday, weather than either of the past two permitting days with the Galveston station piping in at 29 G-1 N701BN ppbv from 6 to 7 AM. Can you say hydrocarbons? Shot from Twin Otter Essentially single digits everywhere else. days continues to hang on and remains The G-1, in concert with the to our west. Tomorrow’s forecast Electra, is conducting an Yesterday’s maximum surface levels suggests that things should be much of ozone occurred to the east and intercomparison flight with the Electra the same with westerly winds in the today. The G-1 will return to southeast of Houston - at Deer Park 2 morning followed by the establishment (168 ppbv) and Houston East (167 Ellington immediately following the of a southerly sea/bay breeze at mid- intercomparison and is planning a hard ppbv) from 4 to 5 PM and at LaPorte day. Skies should remain mostly clear down day for Saturday. It will be Following the intercomparison, the The first flight occurred on available on Sunday. Electra will fly an east-to-west stack Wednesday evening (August 30th) from with north-south oriented legs 7 to 11 PM and Thursday morning DC-3 N56KS (August 31st) from 9 AM to 1 PM. As I These guys are understand it, these obviously having way initial flights were too much fun cause done at 20 meter they’re flying again resolution with some today. A 12:00 PM additional flights takeoff was planned planned for 10 meter with the flight lasting resolution. The Lear for 4 to 6 hours while Crew decided that crossing and cris- today was too cloudy crossing the east and since the Houston metro area likelihood of and extending down cloudiness and into the Gulf. Their precipitation is on the route map is a thing of rise, they decided to beauty that only go home to enjoy the Escher could love. Labor Day weekend. hopes that Maury indicated that with the rest of the they would be back in airforce down, the a week or so to finish DC-3/Lidar crew their work. might be off In addition to the tomorrow but your Lear, it is anticipated guess is as good as that a Cessna Citation mine. Afternoon Ozone on the afternoon of 8/29 - Twin Otter out of the Ames Research Center will Twin Otter beginning west of Houston and arrive mid next week for some work. N153BU proceeding east over and across downtown, the ship channel and Stay tuned for more information on the NASA flights. The Twin Otter crew are towards Beaumont/Port Arthur conducting a pair of flights today tracking the east-northeastward Upcoming Events focusing on Galveston Bay and the moving urban plume. ship channel with side trips to Texas The Electra will not fly on Saturday Daily Meteorological and Aircraft City. but may return to action on Sunday. Planning Meetings - 7:30 AM and The Twin Otter will be down 1:00 PM (Ellington CapRock Building, tomorrow. NASA Thermal Mapping Conference Room). Note: Since all aircraft will be down tomorrow, there Electra/G1 Intercomparison Our NASA partners have already will be no PM meeting today or AM come and gone after first completing and 1:00 PM meeting tomorrow - the The Electra and G-1 are conducting their initial thermal mapping forays next meeting is scheduled for 5:00 PM an intercomparison flight today. The over downtown Houston. According tomorrow (Saturday, September 2nd). intercomparison will begin with a to Maury Estes of the Global Aerosol Group Meeting - Tuesday, north- to-south “wingtip-to-wingtip” Hydrology and Climatic Center, the September 5th, 2:00 PM (Stay Tuned - meridian flight east of Houston NASA Lear Jet - operating out of Location to be Announced) followed by a five-minute separation Stennis Space Center in Mississippi - flight on the same track over a conducted two thermal mapping LaPorte Team Meeting - Tuesday, southeast-to-northwest leg along the flights on a 50 by 55 km grid centered September 5th, 3:00 PM (Stay Tuned - ship channel and then west across the on downtown Houston. Location to be Announced) I-10 corridor. Labor Day Holiday - Monday, If I had my life to live over again, more of them. In fact, I’d try to have September 4, 2000. Business as usual I’d allow myself more mistakes next nothing else. Just moments, one after for TexAQS 2000. time. I would relax a little more, I another, instead of living so many years would limber up. I would be even ahead each day. I have been one of Participants List sillier than I have been this trip. I those people who never go anywhere know of very few things I would take without a thermometer, a hot water Praise be to Cathy Burgdorf who is seriously. I would take more trips. I bottle, a raincoat, aspirin, and a putting together our official “TexAQS would climb more mountains, swim parachute. If I had it to do over again, 2000 Participants List.” Stop by the more rivers and watch more sunsets. I I would go places, do things and travel next time your in the CapRock to would do more walking and looking. lighter than I have this time and I make sure that your particulars are I would eat more ice cream and fewer would ride more merry-go-rounds correctly listed. Remember, no info, beans. I would have more actual and pick more daisies. no shirt! troubles and fewer imaginary ones. You see, I have been one of those Thought for the Day people who lived prophylactically and In the spirit of Labor Day, I submit sensibly and sanely hour after hour, day for your reading pleasure the following after day. Oh, I’ve had my moments, anonymous epitaph. and if I had it to do over, I’d have