25Aug2010 14Z Daily GRIP Telecon

25Aug2010 14Z Daily GRIP Telecon

Global Hawk Report

• Aircraft – green 
  • Thursday – Low altitude drop test in Range
  • Saturday – possible science flight
• Droposonde – red
  • 1^st sonde launch good; 2^nd sonde did not launch because pin release in launch tube stuck (perhaps vacuum pressure against the pin) – might need a redesign of a solenoid.  Low altitude test was at 15K ft
  • Engineers understand the cause of the error but still working on the fix
  • Re-fly of Low Altitude test  flight is tbd
  • COA to drop in the Gulf and Atlantic is approved.  Can still drop sondes in Pacific in international waters but seeking COA for Pacific in US territories
• HAMSR – green.  Interested in validation data with drops or radiosondes
• LIP - green
• HIWRAP – yellow
  • but can still fly; HIWRAP pulled from Global Hawk today for work. Software / hardware (bad board or connector) problem?

WB-57 Report

• Aircraft – green  
• HIRAD - green
• HIRAD shipped on Tuesday
  • Chris Ruf will call in on Thursday
  • Arrival at JSC on Thursday
  • Checkout flight (3hr) on Friday
  • Calm waters over a buoy at different altitudes
  • Fly precipitation
• NAST-I delayed until next week.
  • NAST-I will not be onboard for the test Friday flight.  The piggybacking ground rules for NAST-I are such that it will not impact HIRAD.  No separate test flights will be done for NAST-I.
• WB-57 suitcase flights will be out of MacDill AFB, Tampa FL

DC8 Report

• Aircraft– green.
  • Network issues during the 24Aug flight have been resolved
  • Hard Down day on Thursday
• LASE – green.
• LARGE – green.
• APR2 – green.
• DAWN – yellow.
  • Successfully collected data during the 24Aug flight but the wind retrievals are still being analyzed and processed
• Microphysics – green
  • PIP failed during 24Aug flight.  Pulled off for repair should return by Friday for suitcase to STX
  • CSI cannot fly for the duration of GRIP
• MMS – green.
• Dropsonde – green.

Science

• Possibility of a suitcase flight from STX beginning this weekend.  Possibly PGI-34 or its followers

• Possibility of a GH science flight on Saturday (6a local / 13Z departure) to H. Frank in the EPac.  If we wait until Sunday then H. Frank may be weakened.  HAMSR would like to fly near a rawinsonde site for validation purposes.