2018

First atmospheric measurements of the wind lidar mission Aeolus

After a development period of 16 years, the ESA satellite Aeolus was launched into space on a Vega rocket on 22 August 2018 at 21:20 UTC. Named after the Greek God of the Winds, the satellite carries the revolutionary instrument ALADIN (Atmospheric Laser Doppler Lidar Instrument) - the first European lidar and the world's first ever Doppler wind lidar in space.

First lidar on a stratospheric balloon

The BOLIDE experiment built by the Institute of Atmospheric Physics was the first lidar to fly on a stratospheric balloon. The long duration balloon was launched at July 8th, 2018 at 7:27 UTC from Kiruna, Sweden, during NASA’s summer campaign. From a floating altitude of 39 km, measurements were taken of the atmosphere above. Almost six days later the gondola landed safely in Nunavut, Canada.

Increases in European thunderstorm and hail events

Researchers at the European Severe Storms Laboratory (ESSL), Munich Re, the Ludwig-Maximilians University Munich (LMU) and the German Aerospace Centre (DLR) could show that the number of thunderstorms and the frequency of large hail events have significantly increased in central Europe during past three and a half decades.

DLR - NASA flight tests on alternative fuels

Over the next 15 years, global air traffic is expected to double. Sustainable alternative aviation fuels can play an important role in the environmentally and climate-friendly development of air traffic. Since 2014, the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and the US Aerospace Agency (NASA) have been jointly testing the emissions and properties of contrails of alternative fuels during flight and ground tests. In 2018, joint research flights were held in Germany for the first time. For this purpose, the DLR research aircraft A320 ATRA (Advanced Technology Research Aircraft) and the NASA research aircraft DC-8 DLR research aircraft were stationed at the Ramstein Air Base for three weeks and carried out eight test flights in German airspace.

HALO measures emissions of Asian megacities

Emissions of large cities and urban agglomerations can spread far beyond the borders of the metropolises in certain weather conditions. Particles and gaseous pollutants are often carried by the wind for more than 1,000 kilometers. In March and April 2018, the DLR Institute of Atmospheric Physics (IPA) carried out extensive measurements of the composition and propagation of emissions from Asian megacities using the HALO research aircraft.