Project Grant DESC0015084

This $189,543 Project Grant from the National Science Foundation's Geosciences program (CFDA 47.050) supports the development of a low-cost, lightweight hygrometer for in situ measurements of water vapor in the tropical tropopause layer on high-altitude balloons. The hygrometer will replace the previously used sensor in the RACHUTS instrument package, which collects temperature, humidity, and cloud particle observations to study cirrus cloud formation. The new sensor uses wavelength modulation...

This Project Grant award of $174,988 from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences will support the development of a millimeter-wavelength (mmWave) rapid scan image phased array radar technology demonstrator unit. The objective is to evaluate the feasibility of a future ground-based, mobile phased array cloud radar system that could provide high-resolution measurements of cloud processes, which are crucial for understanding the Earth's climate and...

Truventic LLC was awarded a $250,000 Project Grant from the Department of Energy Office of Science under the Office of Science Financial Assistance Program (CFDA 81.049) on February 22, 2021. The grant funded the development of a FAST RESPONSE HIGH ALTITUDE LASER OPTICAL SENSOR (HALOS) FOR ATMOSPHERIC WATER AND TEMPERATURE MEASUREMENTS. The HALOS sensor will measure water vapor and temperature in the atmosphere from a high-altitude platform to advance the Office of Science's mission of...

This $5,500,000 Project Grant award from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), under the Congressionally-Identified Projects program (CFDA 11.617), aims to increase knowledge about local weather systems in the lower atmosphere. The key activities include: Developing a method to standardize and trace commercial UAS and advanced air mobility (AAM) atmospheric measurements, as well as protocols and standards for the Unmanned Aircraft Meteorological Data Report. Evaluating...

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Laboratory will provide aircraft-derived atmospheric observations to improve weather forecasting models under a $520,500 cooperative agreement from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Through the award's two-year period, MIT Lincoln Laboratory will extract meteorological data from commercial aircraft equipped with Mode S transponders using airport surveillance radars. This effort aims to increase the number, spatial resolution,...

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) awarded a $500,000 Cooperative Agreement under the Weather and Air Quality Research program (CFDA 11.459) to Windborne Systems Inc., a small business based in Palo Alto, California. The funding supports the development of four key capabilities for Windborne's Global Sounding Balloon (GSB) platform: A dropsonde capable of measuring temperature, relative humidity, pressure, and wind speed/direction that can be deployed from the GSB....

Brechtel Manufacturing, Inc. received a $249,730 project grant award from the Department of Energy Office of Science under the Office of Science Financial Assistance Program (CFDA 81.049) to develop a Compact Aerosol Hygroscopic Growth Spectrometer for UAVs and Long-Term Monitoring Applications. The award, issued on February 22, 2021 for a one-year period, will support the company's efforts to design and test a portable spectrometer capable of measuring the water absorption properties of...

Greensight Inc. received a $940,743 cooperative agreement award from the National Science Foundation under the NSF Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships program to develop environmental sensing capabilities using drone swarm technology. The two-year project aims to enable improved severe weather prediction through collection of high-resolution atmospheric data within the boundary layer using a scalable system of synchronized unmanned aircraft. Greensight will leverage lightweight design,...

The Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration awarded Stratosolutions Inc. a $150,000 Project Grant under the NOAA Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program on September 1, 2021 to be completed by February 28, 2022. The grant funds Stratosolutions Inc. to integrate miniaturized dropsondes onto high altitude pseudo-satellite unmanned aerial vehicles to validate weather data collection capabilities not currently possible. Dropsondes are one of the only viable...

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) awarded Windborne Systems Inc. $886,375.16 under the Weather and Air Quality Research program (CFDA 11.459) for a cooperative agreement running from August 1, 2021 to March 31, 2023. Windborne will utilize its high-altitude balloon platform to conduct observation campaigns evaluating the impact of atmospheric data collection on forecast skill. The company's long endurance balloons can actively control altitude from sea level to the...