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Mid-Air Collision Avoidance System (MCAS) Using Mode 5
Title: Principal Investigator
Phone: (303) 449-1105
Email: plawson@specinc.com
Title: President
Phone: (303) 449-1105
Email: plawson@specinc.com
Atmospheric aerosols have a strong potential impact on both global radiative forcing and the planetary hydrological cycle. Quantitative measurements of the particle size distribution and composition of aerosols are required to reliably predict theinfluence aerosols are having on global climate change. Quantitative assessment of aerosol composition (i.e., chemistry) currently requires that air be ingested in the cabin of a research aircraft, where losses in the inlets and tubing are unavoidable.Simple and reliable instrumentation is needed for quantifying particle losses in inlets and tubing.In Phase I, we will design, build and make laboratory tests of a prototype instrumentation system for reliably measuring particle size distribution in tubing just prior to entry into cabin instrumentation. The inlet/tubing characterization system willeasily be transferable from station to station and will be totally compatible with measurements made by the FSSP-300 and FSSP-100, currently the most reliable instrument for measuring aerosol size distribution outside the aircraft. In Phase II we willbuild an airborne version of the new instrumentation system and make comparative measurements with an FSSP-300 mounted on the outside of a research aircraft. It is expected that the new device will eventually be low-cost and readily adaptable forapplication in all inlet/tubing systems and research aircraft.Aerosol measurements are becoming increasingly more important and it is expected that inlet calibration devices will be purchased by almost all of the groups using research aircraft. In addition to research aircraft, inlet calibration devices will beuseful in ground based operations, including measurements of pollutants in urban atmospheres and effluents from stacks. The ground-based applications open an extremely large commercial market.
* Information listed above is at the time of submission. *