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parprbimpacts·v1·dataset

Airborne cloud-particle measurements (winter storms study)

NCAR Particle Probes IMPACTS
atmosphere NASA GHRC_DAAC Level 2 netCDF-4
In plain English

What it measures. Up-close measurements of cloud and precipitation particles, including images of ice and snow particles and the size and concentration of cloud droplets, from drop-sized up to a few centimeters.

How it's made. Recorded by six specialized particle probes flown on NASA's P-3 aircraft through winter storms during the IMPACTS campaign (2020-2023).

How & where you'd use it. Helps scientists understand how snow particles grow inside storms and improve snowfall prediction and satellite snow estimates.

What's measured

Atmosphere › Clouds › Cloud MicrophysicsAtmosphere › Clouds › Cloud Microphysics › Cloud Liquid Water/IceAtmosphere › Clouds › Cloud Microphysics › Cloud Droplet Concentration/SizeAtmosphere › Clouds › Cloud Microphysics › Particle Size Distribution

Coverage & cadence

  • Time span2020-01-18 → 2023-02-28
  • Measured byNASA P-3 (CDP, CPI PROBES, HVPS, PMS 2D-S PROBE)
  • Processing levelLevel 2
  • Spatial extent-95.243, 33.261, -64.987, 48.237
  • FormatsnetCDF-4
  • StatusCOMPLETE

What you can do with it

  • Map air pollutants — NO₂, aerosols, ozone
  • Track greenhouse gases and Earth's energy budget
  • Feed weather and air-quality analysis
Official description

The NCAR Particle Probes IMPACTS dataset consists of data collected from six instruments on the NASA P-3 aircraft, the SPEC Hawkeye Cloud Particle Imager (CPI), the Hawkeye Fast Cloud Droplet Probe (FastCDP), the Hawkeye Two-Dimensional Stereo Probe (Hawkeye2D-S), the SPEC Two-Dimensional Stereo probe (2D-S), and two SPEC High Volume Precipitation Spectrometers (HVPS3). The 2D-S and HVPS3 are two-dimensional optical array probes that record images of particles that travel through their sampling area. The recorded images are then analyzed to produce particle size distributions from 20 microns to 3 centimeters in diameter. The FastCDP is a forward scattering instrument designed to measure the size and concentration of cloud droplets between 2 and 50 microns in diameter. The CPI is a high-resolution imager with a 256-level color depth. No particle concentration estimates have been attempted with the CPI. These data were collected during the Investigation of Microphysics and Precipitation for Atlantic Coast-Threatening Snowstorms (IMPACTS) field campaign, a three-year sequence of winter season deployments conducted to study snowstorms over the U.S. Atlantic coast. IMPACTS aimed to (1) Provide observations critical to understanding the mechanisms of snowband formation, organization, and evolution; (2) Examine how the microphysical characteristics and likely growth mechanisms of snow particles vary across snowbands; and (3) Improve snowfall remote sensing interpretation and modeling to advance prediction capabilities significantly. Data files are available in netCDF-4 format, as well as browse imagery available in PNG format, from January 18, 2020, through February 26, 2020, and January 14, 2022 through February 28, 2023.

Get the data

parprbimpacts_access.py
import earthaccess
earthaccess.login(strategy="netrc")          # free Earthdata Login

results = earthaccess.search_data(
    short_name="parprbimpacts",
    version="1",
    bounding_box=(-122.5, 37.2, -121.8, 37.9),  # your area (W,S,E,N)
    temporal=("2024-01-01", "2024-12-31"),       # your dates
)
files = earthaccess.open(results)   # stream straight from GHRC_DAAC
Browsing CMR needs no login. Downloading or streaming bytes needs a free Earthdata Login + the earthaccess package.