Collaborative Research: HBCU-Excellence in Research--Planetary Boundary Layer Processes from an Incipient Surface/Upper Air Mesonet Network in the Baltimore-Washington Region

该奖项资助购置测量从地球表面到低层大气的气象特性的仪器。本项目的主要研究目标是研究巴尔的摩至华盛顿特区大都市区城市热岛的影响。该地区的土地利用、地形和水体各不相同，使天气预报变得复杂，尤其是空气质量预报。该仪器将提高两所传统黑人学院和大学（HBCUs）的研究能力，并为学生提供动手使用仪器的机会。该项目的首要长期目标是结合地面和遥感技术来回答有关行星边界层（PBL）如何根据陆地表面特征变化的问题。在巴尔的摩-华盛顿地区有一个用于边界层研究的小型仪器集合，该奖项将通过为三个用于地表通量的涡旋相关方差系统、一个用于评估边界层高度的ceilometer和两个用于基于气球的大气观测的无线电探空地面站提供资金来补充这一集合。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This award funds the acquisition of instruments that measure meteorological properties from the Earth’s surface to lower atmosphere. The main research goal of this project is to study the influence of the urban heat island in the Baltimore to Washington DC greater metropolitan areas. This region has varied land use, topography, and water bodies that complicate forecasts of weather, especially for air quality. The instrumentation will enhance the research capacity at two Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and provide hands-on instrumentation opportunities for students.The overarching long-term goal of the project is to use a combination of ground-based and remote sensing techniques to answer questions about how the Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL) changes based on land surface characteristics. A small collection of instrumentation for boundary layer studies exists in the Baltimore-Washington region, and this award will add to that by providing funds for three eddy covariance systems for surface fluxes, a ceilometer for the assessment of boundary layer height, and two radiosonde ground stations for balloon-based observations of the atmosphere.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.