Tag Archives: research aircraft

Wirbelschleppen: DLR testet Warnsystem bei Flugversuchen

Wenn Flugzeuge fliegen, entstehen hinter ihnen Luftverwirbelungen, so genannte Wirbelschleppen. Diese können Auswirkungen auf den nachfolgenden Flugverkehr haben. Das Deutsche Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR) erprobt nun in Flugversuchen ein Wirbelschleppenwarnsystem mit den Forschungsflugzeugen ATRA und Falcon. Das System kann die potentiell gefährlichen Wirbelschleppen allein aus den Positionsdaten- und Wetterinformationen des vorausfliegenden Flugzeugs vorhersagen. (more…)

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NASA Radar to Study Hawaii’s Most Active Volcano

An airborne radar developed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., has returned to Hawaii to continue its study of Kilauea volcano, Hawaii’s current most active volcano.

The Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar, or UAVSAR, mounted in a pod under NASA’s G-III research aircraft from NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, Calif., returned to Hawaii’s Big Island on Jan. 7. The one-week airborne campaign will help scientists better understand processes occurring under Earth’s surface at Kilauea. (more…)

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Upper Atmosphere Facilitates Changes That Let Mercury Enter Food Chain

Humans pump thousands of tons of vapor from the metallic element mercury into the atmosphere each year, and it can remain suspended for long periods before being changed into a form that is easily removed from the atmosphere.

New research shows that the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere work to transform elemental mercury into oxidized mercury, which can easily be deposited into aquatic ecosystems and ultimately enter the food chain. (more…)

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