A new commercial instrument for measuring Cloud Condensation Nuclei (CCN), the Droplet Measurement Technologies Cylindrical Continuous-Flow Streamwise Thermal Gradient CCN Chamber (CFSTGC), installed on Mount Huang meteorological station (30°19'N, 118°14'E, 1840m above sea level) from 16 April to 28 July 2008. This instrument can measure CCN concentrations at supersaturations from 0.1% to 2% (potentially up to 6%), as well as a 1 Hz sampling rate that is sufficient for ground-based or airborne platform operation. The instrument records data continuously at 1-second intervals 24 hours a day. For the 98-day, continuous study the average CCN concentration was found to range between a few hundred and a few thousand nuclei per cm³ at supersaturations between 0.3 and 1%. Diurnal variations were observed, as well as other possible influences, such as wind speed, wind direction and mixing depth. At a constant supersaturation of 0.5% the CCN concentration is typically on the order of 361 to 2297 nuclei per cm³. A description of the instrumentation and early observations are presented and discussed.

Date Published: 10 July 2009
PDF: 5 pages
Proc. SPIE 7490, PIAGENG 2009: Intelligent Information, Control, and Communication Technology for Agricultural Engineering, 74900W (10 July 2009); doi: 10.1117/12.836700

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 7490:
PIAGENG 2009: Intelligent Information, Control, and Communication Technology for Agricultural Engineering
Honghua Tan; Qi Luo, Editor(s)