POLCAST3 Experiment Starts June 21, 2010

Dr. David Delene, Dr. Tony Grainger and Dr. Gretchen Mullendore received funding in May for the Polarimetric Cloud Analysis and Seeding Test 3 (POLCAST3): 2010 Field Season project. POLCAST3 is a cooperative effort involving the University of North Dakota (UND), the National Center for Atmospheric Research NCAR), Weather Modification Incorporated (WMI), and Ice Crystal Engineering (ICE), and is sponsored by the North Dakota Atmospheric Resource Board. The overall research objective is to better understand the effects of hygroscopic cloud seeding at cloud base on convective clouds in North Dakota. Field measurements using the UND Polarimetric Radar, an instrument WMI Cessna 340 Aircraft, the UND Citation Research Aircraft, and surface measurements on top of Clifford Hall will be conducted between June 21 and July 23 2010. Three under graduate students, Chris Kruse, Miranda Hilgers, and Emily Danielson, and graduate student, David Keith, are working on the research project.