A.
Video interview with V. Ramanathan of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

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B.
Video interview with Jeff Stith of the National Center for Atmospheric Research.
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Click here or on image to view video.
Click here to enlarge photo.
Ramanathan, a principal investigator on the Pacific Dust Experiment (PACDEX), discusses how the massive plumes of dust and pollantants from Asia may affect global warming. (Photo by Carlye Calvin, Video by Jeff Alipit, ©UCAR. News media terms of use*) |
Click here or on image to view video.
Click here to enlarge photo.
Stith, a principal investigator on the Pacific Dust Experiment (PACDEX), discusses how the dust and pollutants can interact with clouds. (Photo by Carlye Calvin, Video by Jeff Alipit, ©UCAR. News media terms of use*) |
C.
Satellite view of Asian dust near California
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D.
Satellite view of Asian dust over the Pacific

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Click here or on image to enlarge.
This April 15, 2001, NASA satellite image shows dust arriving in California
from Asian deserts. Concentrations of dust are visible to the south, near
the coastline (lower right of image); to the west the dust is mixed with clouds
over open ocean. This dust event caused a persistent haze in places like Death
Valley, California, where skies are usually crystal clear. (Image courtesy
the SeaWiFS Project, NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, and ORBIMAGE.) |
Click here or on image to enlarge.
This NASA satellite image, taken on April 30, 2005, shows a plume of dust
flowing from China to the north of the Korean Peninsula and over the Sea
of Japan.The dust almost completely obscures the island of Honshu from
satellite view. Such plumes can cross the Pacific and scatter dust across
the Western United States.(NASA images created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory,
using data obtained from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer
(MODIS) and Goddard Earth Sciences. Image courtesy the SeaWiFS Project,
NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, and ORBIMAGE.) |
E.
Readying the G-V research aircraft for PACDEX
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F.
Behind-the-scenes, preparing for PACDEX
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Click here or on image to enlarge.
NCAR engineer Kurt Zrubek (left) and aircraft mechanic Robert Beasley attach part of a pylon mount on a wing of the NSF/NCAR Gulfstream-V. The pylon will hold research instruments under the airplane's wing. (Photo by Carlye Calvin, ©UCAR. News media terms of use*) |
Click here or on image to enlarge.
James Nolan, an aircraft mechanic at NCAR, works on a mount that will hold an instrument package on the fuselage of the NSF/NCAR Gulfstream-V. The instruments will help scientists measure solar radiation in the atmosphere. (Photo by Carlye Calvin, ©UCAR. News media terms of use*) |
G.
Hypothetical PACDEX flight map
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Click here or on image to enlarge.
This illustration shows a hypothetical plume and possible series of flight patterns during the PACDEX field project. When a major plume of dust and pollutants begins blowing off Asia, the G-V would fly from Boulder to Anchorage, where it would refuel, and then fly on to Yokota Air Base, Japan. It would then conduct a series of flights for about a week in and around the plume as the plume moves over the ocean to North America. (Illustration by Steve Deyo, ©UCAR. News media terms of use*) |
G-2.
Flight path during the live chat with scientists
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H.
Satellite measurements of Asian dust across the Pacific
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Click here or on image to enlarge.
This image, drawn from satellite observations, shows the movement of a particularly
large dust plume from Asia to North America in 2001. The purple and blue areas
represent no or little dust in the atmosphere; the yellow and orange areas represent
a moderate to high amounts of dust. The image uses a scientific measure known
as aerosol optical depth, which shows how much light in a column of the atmosphere
is blocked by airborne particles. The observations were taken by the Moderate
Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), flown aboard NASA's Terra satellite.
(Image courtesy NASA.) |
I.
The NSF/NCAR Gulfstream-V
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Click here or on image to enlarge.
The NSF/NCAR Gulfstream-V in flight over the western United States. (ŠUCAR. News
media terms of use*) |
Click here or on image to enlarge.
Latest In-Flight Video Capture |
| Contacts for This Release |
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For Journalists
David Hosansky, head of Media Relations
303-497-8611, hosansky@ucar.edu
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UCAR Communications
www.ucar.edu/news/contacts.shtml |
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General inquiries
Yvonne Mondragon,
303-497-8601, yvonnem@ucar.edu
Photo inquiries
Carlye Calvin, 303-497-8609, calvin@ucar.edu
Digital
Image Library
www.ucar.edu/imagelibrary |
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*News media reproduction to illustrate this story and nonprofit use permitted with proper attribution as provided above and acceptance of UCAR's terms of use. Find more images in the UCAR Digital Image Library.
The National Center for Atmospheric Research and UCAR Office of Programs are operated by UCAR under the sponsorship of the National Science Foundation and other agencies. Opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any of UCAR's sponsors. |