NSF facilities & education

1. NSF facilities & education Pat Kennedy, Bart Geerts input from Peggy Lemone, Vanda Grubisic, Bob Rauber, Brigitte Baeuerle, Ian McCubbin, Donna Kliche, Kevin Knupp, Bruce Albrecht, Jeff McWirther, Don Murray, Bill Brown, Mike Poulot, Mike Daniels, Vidal Salazar, and others

2. where are the students? • problem: real need to recruit students in atmospheric measurements • how do instruments work? • how to collect data? • how to do science with the data • solution: collaboration is needed • have a few experts (from NCAR,CSU,UWyo…) travel around the country to teach in person (aircraft instruments, chemistry, soundings, radar …) • develop a series of online modules or some interactive webcasts • take advantage of fortuitous opportunities • scientists in the field can give seminars • facilities in the field can be visited by nearby universities • Good planning and collaboration needed

3. getting students in the field • Student participation in the field is expensive, hard to get funded, but worthwhile • education proposals with some science usually get hammered for being weak on education • three levels of participation • survey level (peer reviewed literature, google …) • virtual operations center, V-CHILL, real-time MIPS & radar … • field participation • Solution: • contact facility managers to get students involved (may reduce deployment cost) • science proposals with a strong education component tend to be more successful (eg RICO) • supplemental REUs …

4. connecting coursework to research • problem: • traditionally, field results trickle through into courses via pubs & books • students get little chance to hone their skills in using real data and do science with it. • data tend to demand steep learning, thus students tend to have a myopic view

5. solution: using (old) field campaign data for education • develop ‘case studies’ around a specific topic • compare to COMET/NWS Case Study Library of operational data • include the range of data found in the field catalog • datasets must be readily accessible • spatial context: IDV • P/Is must work with EOL to • select relevant dataset (e.g. best day) • provide a brief synopsis of the science questions that motivated the collection of these data • describe / provide links of datasets available • provide the necessary software (free download) • EOL case studies should be centrally archived • newsletter!

6. more thoughts • newsletter contents • educational opportunities, e.g. in upcoming field campaigns • new case studies published • EOL summer engineering interns • CSU Engineering REU • National Radar Facility Opportunities • specific REUs (NSF, NASA …) • etc

7. the following slides were not used in the summary presentation

8. Education goals for NSF observing facility use: • Developing next generation of researchers • Supplying material for “classroom” use • Giving exposure to the observing equipment Facility access methods: • Standard NSF proposal (RICO, J. Hallet 1991) • Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) • Virtual interactions (VCHILL, remote tours)

9. REU (CSU Engineering) • EOL Engineering Summer Program • Senior Thesis projects tied to facilities • VCHILL • Student Positions during field campaigns • RICO Student Flight • Airborne Mission Flight Planning Opportunities during HEFT / airborne certification flights • Advantage of physical location of CSU/WY/NCAR Facilities (REU?) & others here in Boulder (DOWs, NOAA equipment….) • National Radar Facility Opportunities • Mission Briefings – “Elluminate” • Use of sat comm set-up to follow GV • “Teachers on Sea” equivalent • Milagro – Windows to the Universe • Bilingual education • Gap in understanding of what an instrument can do and the skill of working on an instrument • Case studies • Use of test beds • Exposure to planning, basic analyses, data quality control • Combine with cultural experience

10. questions • How do we advertise opportunities? • Who has time? • How much funding does it take? • Luddite • Publication pressure • Field Campaigns appealing

11. atmospheric researchobservational facilitiestrends (in US) • the number of research aircraft has declined • the number of laboratories has declined (cloud chambers, wind tunnels, remote monitoring labs …) • the number of course offerings on atmospheric measurements/instrumentation has declined • the number of MSc/PhD graduates focusing on ATSC experimental measurements has declined

12. during a field campaign • a field campaign can be a very motivating and formative experience for young graduate students • e.g. RICO • bringing additional students into the field is expensive • Virtual Operations Center • spatial context: use of IDV to enable real-time operations

13. ACE-1: Aerosol Characterization Experiment ACE-Asia: Aerosol Characterization Experiment, Asia-Pacific Region ARCSS: ARCtic System Science ATLAS: Arctic Transitions in the Land-Atmosphere System BAMEX: Bow Echo and Mesoscale Convective Vortex Experiment CaPE: Convection and Precipitation/Electrification Experiment CASES: Cooperative Atmosphere-Surface Exchange Study CEPEX: Central Equatorial Pacific Experiment CPPA: Climate Prediction Project for the Americas CuPIDO: Cumulus Photogrammetric Insitu Doppler Obersvations DYCOMS-II: The Dynamics and Chemistry of Marine Stratocumulus Phase II: Entrainment Studies EPIC2001: East Pacific Investigation of Climate Processes in the Coupled Ocean-Atmosphere System FASTEX: Fronts and Atlantic Storm Tracks EXperiment GAPP: GEWEX Americas Prediction Project GCIP: GEWEX Continental-Scale International Project GHP: GEWEX Hydrometeorology Panel INDOEX: INDian Ocean EXperiment IHOP: International H2O Project ITEX: International Tundra EXperiment Lake-ICE: Lake-Induced Convection Experiment La Plata River Basin Project (LPB) Monsoon Experiment South America MILAGRO: Megacity Initiative: Local and Global Research Observations MICROFRONTS: Microfronts Experiment NAME: North American Monsoon Experiment OHHI: Oceans and Human Health Initiative PACDEX: PACific Dust EXperiment PACS: Pan American Climate Studies RAINEX: Hurricane Rainband and Intensity Change Experiment REFRACTT: Refractivity Experiment For H2O Research And Collaborative operational Technology Transfer RICO: Rain In Cumulus over the Ocean SALLJEX: South American Low-Level Jet Experiment SBI: Shelf-Basin Interactions SHEBA: Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic STORM-FEST: USWRP/STORM Fronts Experiment Systems Test STORM-WAVE: USWRP/STORM Weather Assimilation and Verification Experiment TOGA-COARE: TOGA Coupled Ocean Atmosphere Response Experiment T-REX: Terrain-Induced Rotor EXperiment UMRBPP: Upper Missouri River Basin Pilot Project VAMOS: Variability of the American MOnsoon Systems VOCALS: VAMOS Ocean-Cloud-Atmosphere-Land Study VORTEX: Verification of the Origin of Rotation in Tornadoes EXperiment WVSS: Water Vapor Sensing System post-field-phase:using field campaign data for education http://www.eol.ucar.edu/projects/