Alaska Climate Research Center

The Alaska State Climate Center
The Alaska State Climate Center
The Alaska State Climate Center
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LASAT Lagrange Simulation for Aerosol Transport

As part of the “Secure and Resilient Power Generation in Cold Region Environments” project, ACRC scientists, Dr. Carl Schmitt and Dr. Julia Simonson, are studying the impact on ice fog of different power generation schemes. The project has two major components: measurements and modeling. 

For the measurement component, they have installed an extensive array of instrumentation in the Fairbanks Region to better understand the conditions that lead to ice fog formation and the role that the current power generation equipment plays in fog formation. Measurements include several weather stations, two Microwave Temperature Profilers measuring the atmospheric temperature up to 1000 meters above the surface as well as surface-based ice fog particle measurement instrumentation. Measurements have been conducted through two strikingly different ice fog seasons. 

For the modeling component, they are conducting simulations (based on the measurements) to estimate the dispersion of ice fog particles using the Lagrange Simulation for Aerosol Transport (LASAT) modeling system. LASAT uses atmospheric measurements and ice particle properties to follow the path of ice fog particles from their emission from the power plant stacks into the future. By manipulating environmental characteristics, they will be able to estimate the impact on ice fog of different power generation fuel sources.