Fine Structure, Instabilities, and Turbulence in the Lower Atmosphere: High-Resolution In Situ Slant-Path Measurements with the DataHawk UAV and Comparisons with Numerical Modeling

A new platform for high-resolution in situ measurements in the lower troposphere is described and its capabilities are demonstrated. The platform is the small GPS-controlled DataHawk unmanned aerial system (UAS), and measurements were performed under stratified atmospheric conditions at Dugway Proving Ground, Utah, on 11 October 2012. The measurements included spiraling vertical profiles of temperature and horizontal wind vectors, from which the...