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    • NOAA Aircraft Operations Center (AOC) Flight Level Data

    Metadata Updated: September 19, 2023

    NOAA AOC WP-3D Research Flight Data is digital data set DSI-6420, archived at the National Climatic Data Center (NCDC). This data set is meteorological data gathered by Lockheed WP-3D Orion aircraft, operated by the NOAA Aircraft Operations Center (AOC) at MacDill AFB, Florida. Data is provided by the Science and Engineering Division of AOC to the National Climatic Data Center (NCDC). The WP-3D aircraft perform many projects throughout the year. Examples of these projects would be hurricane research, atmospheric chemistry, thunderstorm investigations, and winter weather missions. Each of these projects consists of a series of individual flights. For instance, during hurricane projects, the P-3 may fly numerous flights through different tropical cyclones. For each archived project, there are multiple directories consisting of individual flights. The data in these flight directories contain the actual raw meteorological parameters obtained from sensors located in different positions on the aircraft. The data is initially written to a digital data tape on the aircraft and then later converted to a file for faster processing and archiving. Each flight folder also contains a scanned image of the actual flight manifest, the navigation log, and the mission observation logs. The flight-level data file contains measurements acquired in one second intervals. The following is a generalized list of these measured parameters: Time, GPS position data, inertial data, radar altimeter measurements, liquid water, total temperature, dewpoint temperature, attack pressure, slip pressure, differential attack and slip pressures, and static and dynamic pressure. Depending on the needs of each individual project, other sources of data will be added or subtracted from this list. As of publication this record consists of 5 projects: 1) NOAA-42 Aircraft-N42RF during the 2003 Hurricane season, the Tamdar project, and a wind calibration flight. 2) NOAA-43 Aircraft-N43RF-2003 Sar Pod, Hurricane, and Extratropical Season as well as the SFMR test flight missions. 3) NOAA-49 Aircraft-N49RF 2004 Winter Storms Experiment. 4) NOAA-43 Name Experiment 2004. 5) NOAA-49 Aircraft N49RF Hurricane Season 2004.

    Access & Use Information

    License: No license information was provided. If this work was prepared by an officer or employee of the United States government as part of that person's official duties it is considered a U.S. Government Work.

    Downloads & Resources

    Dates

    Metadata Date June 23, 2023
    Metadata Created Date October 28, 2022
    Metadata Updated Date September 19, 2023
    Reference Date(s) []
    Frequency Of Update quarterly

    Metadata Source

    Harvested from ncdc

    Other Data Resources

    Graphic Preview

    Image of Lockheed WP-3D Orion aircraft (source: NOAA AOC).

    Additional Metadata

    Resource Type Dataset
    Metadata Date June 23, 2023
    Metadata Created Date October 28, 2022
    Metadata Updated Date September 19, 2023
    Reference Date(s) []
    Responsible Party NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (Point of Contact)
    Contact Email
    Guid gov.noaa.ncdc:C00581
    Access Constraints Cite as: NOAA Aircraft Operations Center ([year of data]): NOAA AOC Flight Level Data [indicate dataset name and subset used]. NOAA National Climatic Data Center. [access date]., Distribution liability: NOAA and NCEI make no warranty, expressed or implied, regarding these data, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty. NOAA and NCEI cannot assume liability for any damages caused by any errors or omissions in these data. If appropriate, NCEI can only certify that the data it distributes are an authentic copy of the records that were accepted for inclusion in the NCEI archives., Use liability: NOAA and NCEI cannot provide any warranty as to the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of furnished data. Users assume responsibility to determine the usability of these data. The user is responsible for the results of any application of this data for other than its intended purpose.
    Bbox East Long -30.0
    Bbox North Lat 80.0
    Bbox South Lat -10.0
    Bbox West Long -180.0
    Coupled Resource
    Frequency Of Update quarterly
    Graphic Preview Description Image of Lockheed WP-3D Orion aircraft (source: NOAA AOC).
    Graphic Preview File https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/pub/data/metadata/images/C00581_lockheed2.jpg
    Graphic Preview Type JPEG
    Harvest Object Id a3a012a1-ad25-4dda-bc82-71b2a9501996
    Harvest Source Id 2cb3ef77-1683-4c2a-9119-dc65e50917c6
    Harvest Source Title ncdc
    Licence
    Lineage
    Metadata Language eng; USA
    Metadata Type geospatial
    Old Spatial {"type": "Polygon", "coordinates": [[[-180.0, -10.0], [-30.0, -10.0], [-30.0, 80.0], [-180.0, 80.0], [-180.0, -10.0]]]}
    Progress onGoing
    Spatial Data Service Type
    Spatial Reference System
    Spatial Harvester True
    Temporal Extent Begin 1989-09-15

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