Innovative Mini Ultralight Radioprobes to Track Lagrangian Turbulence Fluctuations within Warm Clouds: Electronic Design

Abstract

Characterization of dynamics inside clouds remains a challenging task for weather forecasting and climate modeling as cloud properties depend on interdependent natural processes at micro- and macro-scales. Turbulence plays an important role in particle dynamics inside clouds; however, turbulence mechanisms are not yet fully understood partly due to the difficulty of measuring clouds at the smallest scales. To address these knowledge gaps, an experimental method for measuring the influence of small-scale turbulence in cloud formation in situ and producing an in-field cloud Lagrangian dataset is being developed by means of innovative ultralight radioprobes. This paper presents the electronic system design along with the obtained results from laboratory and field experiments regarding these compact (diameter ≈30 cm), lightweight (≈20 g), and expendable devices designed to passively float and track small-scale turbulence fluctuations inside warm clouds. The fully customized mini-radioprobe board (5 cm × 5 cm) embeds sensors to measure local fluctuations and transmit data to the ground in near real time. The tests confirm that the newly developed probes perform well, providing accurate information about atmospheric turbulence as referenced in space. The integration of multiple radioprobes allows for a systematic and accurate monitoring of atmospheric turbulence and its impact on cloud formation.

Validation and traceability of multi-parameter miniaturized radiosondes for environmental observations

“…The design of the radiosonde electronic board, tests inside environmental chamber and initial the performance evolution of the radiosonde in field experiments were described in the previous work by Miryam et. al [9].…”

“…The radio tranmission module of the radioprobe enables the one-way wireless communication with ground stations using radio frequency signals. PHT (Pressure, Humidity, Temperature), IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit) and GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) sensors provide sensor readings of physical quantities [9]. Those quantities together with sensor operating ranges, sample rate and provider functional unit are described in Table 1.…”

“…The feasibility analysis of the selected network architecture was carried out in different application scenarios [14,15,16]. First in-field test of the network architecture in the current application context were presented here [9]. In most cases, LoRa protocol based WSN networks are used as within LoRaWAN network.…”

“…In most cases, LoRa protocol based WSN networks are used as within LoRaWAN network. However, in this work, LoRa protocol is used to create an ad hoc private network and adapt the technology to the working scenario [9]. Therefore, the commercial off-the-shelf LoRa-based transceiver module RFM95 from HopeRF was used.…”

“…Therefore, the commercial off-the-shelf LoRa-based transceiver module RFM95 from HopeRF was used. It is a module featuring long-range spreadspectrum communication links and high immunity to interference whilst optimizing the power use [9]. This module allows power-transmission ranges within 5 dBm (3.16 mW) to 20 dBm (100 mW), although according to the regulations re- 2, the air density changes with the altitude, thus the lifting force.…”