Fog-82: A Cooperative Field Study of Radiation Fog

Abstract

The Cloud Physics Section of the Atmospheric Sciences Research Center-State University of New York at Albany conducted a cooperative field study (FOG-82) during the autumn of 1982 as part of an ongoing radiation-fog research program. A computer-controlled data-acquisition system consisting of sophisticated soil, surface, and boundary-layer sensors, as well as contemporary aerosol and droplet probes was developed. These data are being used to address a variety of critical problems related to radiation-fog evolution. Scientists from 10 universities and research laboratories participated in portions of FOG-82. Research objectives included studies of fog mesoscale meteorology, radiation studies, low-level water budget, vertical fog structure, fog supersaturation, condensation nuclei, and fog-water chemistry, as well as radiation-fog life cycles. A comprehensive description of the FOG-82 program and objectives is presented.