On 11 March, the Mokotów Field hosted test flights of a new drone purchased as part of the research project "Impact of aerosol on microphysical, optical and radiation properties of fog". An apparatus for measuring solar radiation (miniature spectrometer) was mounted on the drone. During the flight, specially prepared software to detect the position of the sun and track its position was tested. The first data collected allows seeing how the amount of radiation reaching the sensor changes with height. In the future, this type of data will allow estimating the radiation balance in the smog layer. Participating in the measurements were: Krzysztof Markowicz (project leader), Michał Chiliński (collaborator), Szymon Acedański (drone operator), Katarzyna Nurowska (investigator).

The project investigates physical processes associated with the development and disappearance of fog, in particular hygroscopic aerosol growth processes and droplet evaporation processes associated with air heating by absorbing aerosols, as well as radiation processes occurring from the ground surface to the upper fog boundary. For this purpose, a modern research methodology based on an unmanned flying platform is used. A horizontally stabilised platform is used to mount a pyranometer and a pyrgeometer on the drone. This makes it possible to obtain radiation balance data in the smog layer, which are crucial for physical processes such as condensation and evaporation of water droplets. Experimental research will be conducted in continuous mode and during field experiments in the Warsaw metropolitan area As well as the SolarAOT radiation transfer station in Strzyżów in the Podkarpacie region. 

More information on the project website.