Visit to Howard University Atmospheric Research Facility
18 May 2010 After this morning's heavy discussions on Raman lidar water vapor calibration issues, we had a quick lunch and hopped on a bus to see Howard University's Atmospheric Research facility in nearby Beltsville. Through their own development efforts and partnerships with other government/private groups they have assembled a unique set of atmospheric monitoring equipment, including their wind and water vapor lidar systems. The water vapor system is shown in some pictures of myself, Emily and the Principal Investigator, Prof. Demetrius Venable (shown explaining the calibration system he and his students have developed). Impressive! Hearing the talks is good, but nothing beats seeing the system in action to appreciate the challenges involved.Most of the graduate students were not around, because there are all on a cruise across the Atlantic! No, Howard is not the nicest school in the world to their students, and before you ask Purple Crow grad students, these folks are working 24/7 taking atmospheric measurements on a research vessel. They will be back at month's end and spend the rest of summer taking measurements with the equipment we saw today.
