ATTEX - Company News

MTP-5 instruments at the network of Russian Federal Service for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring

Orenburg	Orenburg (mobile station)	Ufa
Microwave temperature profiler (MTP-5) since 1998 has a pattern approval Certificate of measuring instruments (RU.C.32.002.A N 5539) from State Commitee of Russia for Standards, Metrology and Certification. In 2000 the Central Commission for Instruments and Methods of Observation of the Russian Federal Service for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring (ROSHYDROMET) recommended MTP-5 instruments for using in the network of upper air stations and meteorological stations of Russia. At 2002 Roshydromet are purchased from ATTEX two MTP-5H instruments. One of it was installed at Orenburg upper air station (Ural region), the second one - at Ufa upper air station (Bashkortostan Republic). At about in the same time Government of Moscow city purchased one more MTP-5 instrument for the Weather Forecast Bureau of Moscow and Moscow region. This instrument was installed at the central part of Moscow city. Specialists from the Central Aerological Observatory (CAO, Dolgoprudny, Moscow region) and from the Hydrometeorological Center of Russia (Moscow) developed the Procedure for the using of MTP-5 data for local weather forecasting, for air pollution forecasting and for forecasting of severe weather activing (fog, icing morning frost) and for investigation of city microclimate. MTP-5 also are using in Orenburg as a part of a Mobil system for local investigation of air pollution near by big oil factories.

MTP-5P at Antarctic plateau

MTP-5P at Antarctic station Dome C

Dome C
(75°06´S, 123°24´E, Alt 3280 m)

The temperature inversion in atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) is an ubiquitous feature of the high - latitude climate. In the polar region temperature inversion is a complicated phenomenon involving interactions between surface radiative cooling, subsidence and warm air advection. In 2001 Russian scientific production company ATTEX in cooperation with the Netherlands company Kipp&Zonen manufacturing special new microwave temperature profile for polar region - MTP-5P with improved vertical resolution

The MTP-5P (P- means Polar) has an antenna half-power beam width of 0,5° and vertical resolution at lowest altitude 10÷20 m in contrast with standard MTP-5 instrument with beam width of 6° and vertical resolution 50÷100 m. MTP-5P instrument has special protection against strong wind and very low temperature. At Autumn 2001 MTP-5P has been successfully tested in Moscow region and compared with radiosonde data. At November - December 2002 MTP-5P instrument was in operation at Italian Antarctic station Dome C (75°06´S, 123°24´E, Alt 3280 m) with the range of the temperature at ground level -50°C÷-30°C. It firstly gave the possibility to have continuous data about ABL temperature structure above the Antarctic plateau and to calculate parameters of temperature inversion: height of inversion base, inversion depth, and temperature difference across the inversion. The data set from Dome C station included: height and thermal structure of the ABL, surface heat fluxes, ground and air temperature, vertical velocity, wind speed and momentum fluxes. The preliminary analysis of the MTP-5P data from Antarctica shows that it will be very useful instrument for measurement of ABL temperature regime in polar region.

URBAN HEAT ISLAND. Investigation of Megapolicy (Moscow) influence to the atmosphere on the basis of ATTEX MTP-5 instruments data

Figure 1

During 2001-2003 three ATTEX microwave temperature profilers (MTP-5) were used simultaneously in Moscow region (Russia) for continuous measurement of atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) temperature profiles. One MTP-5 instrument was installed in the center of Moscow city, the second - at the north part of Moscow (Dolgoprudny), and the third - at about 30 km westward from the Moscow city center (Zvenigorod, Figure 1). One of the scientific objectivity of such measurement is determination of influence of Megapolici to the ABL parameters-first of all, investigation of city heat island in different seasons. (WMO Project GURME - Global Urban Meteorology and Environment). The second objectivity is the study of the energy balance near the ground surface and to collect continuous data about ABL stability in different synoptic situations (US Department of Energy, one of the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement - ARM - Project)

Figure 2

Preceding climatological data set about temperature inversion in this region were collected on the base of radiosonde data only (from upper air station Dolgoprudny). Three - points simultaneous remote sensing observations firstly gave detail quantitative parameters of temperature inversion, ABL stability and it's differences in the center of urban area and in outside (Figure 2). It was firstly obtained quantitative parameters of heat island in ABL of Moscow city for different seasons and miscellaneous synoptic situations. It was experimentaly confirmed that in some synoptic situations urban environment have influences the city microclimate which is comparable with influence from large-scale meteorological processes and sometimes the heating from antropogenic source dominates radiational cooling of the lowest atmospheric layer.

For more details: Kadygrov E.N., Kuznetsova I.N., Golitsyn G.S. Heat island in atmospheric boundary layer of a big city: new results on the basis of remote sensing data. Doklady Akademii Nauk (Reports of Russian Academy of Sciences), 2002, vol. 385, N 4, pp. 541-548 (in Russian).

NEW ATTEX TESTING FACILITY

Figure 1.
Vladimir Nekrasov, the Chief of new ATTEX testing facility, is checking the 5-mm radiometer parameters.

Since November, 2002, ATTEX had a new testing facility for testing and checking of VHF components characteristics. It's gave a possibility to improve the quality control of mm-wave receivers which had been using in ATTEX instruments (MTP-5, DHS and others).

The set of testing and checking equipments included:

panoramic measurers of standing wave factor and amplitude-frequency characteristic measurement for wavelength of 3 mm; 5 mm; 8 mm;
special VHF passive components (wavequides, attenuators, valves, e.t.c.);
measurers of local oscillators power and frequency (for the frequency range from 19 GHz up to 95 GHz);
VHF signal sources on the basis of gas-discharge noise generators;
set of standard measurement equipments: power supply units, generators, oscillograph, voltmeters, ampermeters, e.t.c.
thermostat system with the temperature range - 70°C÷+70°C

The VHS testing facility gave the possibility to measure different characteristics of mm-wave radiometers and it's components: amplitude-frequency characteristic; attenuation-frequency characteristic, drive characteristic; band-pass response; transmission factor; standing wave factor, e.t.c.

It also gave possibility to check the VHS element's (local oscillators, mixers, amplifiers) parameters: frequency, power, band-pass, e.t.c.

For mm-wave receivers (radiometers) possible to measure: central frequency, band-pass, sensitivity, noise temperature, stability in time and in temperature.

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