Official campaign start

Today we held our kick-off event for the PEGASOS campaigns in Friedrichshafen. With Prof. Annette Schavan (German minister of education and research), Robert-Jan Smits (Director-General for research and innovation of the European Commissions) and great weather we had ideal conditions for the event.

Prof. Anette Schavan holding her speech for the kick-off event.

Robert-Jan Smits holding his speech for the official campaign start.

Our coordinator Spyros Pandis from Forth, Greece and Andreas Wahner from Forschungszentrum Jülich, Germany and Thomas Brandt, CEO of ZLT Zeppelin Luftschifftechnik GmbH & Co KG here presented the planned flight routes and scientific background of the project.

 

 

The representatives from politics and press were given the chance for intensive exchange with scientists, explaining the operating principles of our instruments and the advantages of the Zeppelin as platform for atmospheric science studies.

Prof. Wahner showing the Top Platform to Prof. Schavan and Mr. Smits.

PD Astrid Kiendler-Scharr explaining the Top Platform to a childrens's reporter.

Scientists looking at the now completely decorated Zeppelin Airship.

Some press coverage can be found at:

Forschungszentrum Jülich press release
German Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) press release
NZZ online
Krone.at
Child news "logo" 

Welt Online 1
Welt Online 2

3sat 

Stern

Zeit Online
Deutschlandfunk 
Hamburger Abendblatt 

Stuttgarter Zeitung

Boulevard Baden

Aachener Zeitung

PEGASOS 2012 field campaign preparations

Over the last few days, the instruments and their operators have been arriving in Friedrichshafen. Instruments are turned on for the first time after shipping, calibrations are performed. Issues arising from shipping the instruments or just appearing now are being fixed.

The Airship is being made pretty for the flights (and also the official launch ceremony).

It is exciting for everyone involved in the field campaign to see it nearing, becoming real.

Tomorrow we will celebrate the official start of the campaign in an opening ceremony with  Prof. Annette Schavan (German minister of education and research), Robert-Jan Smits (Director-General for research and innovation of the European Commissions), and other high ranking guests. Pictures and links to media coverage will follow here.

We are all looking forward to a successful launch!

Planned transfer routes for the west mission and the south mission

After a site survey tour to get impressions from possible airports for refuelling and overnight stays, a preliminary schedule for the west and south mission has been worked out. The final, detailed flight routes will be worked out by the pilots. Of course, this planned schedule is dependent on weather conditions and is to be understood as guideline only.
All airport locations are linked to Google Maps.

West mission
14.05.2012: Transfer from Friedrichshafen (ZLT) to Mainz-Finthen airport, refuelling in Malmsheim or optionally in Speyer.
15.05.2012: Transfer from Mainz-Finthen airport to Rotterdam airport, refuelling in Bonn-Hangelar
16.-26.05.2012: Scientific missions in the region, including the KNMI-mast at Cabauw, about 30 flight hours
27.05.2012: Transfer from Rotterdam airport to Mainz-Finthen airport, refuelling in Bonn-Hangelar
28.05.2012: Transfer from Mainz-Finthen airport to Friedrichshafen, refuelling in Malmsheim or optionally Speyer

The flight plan for the west mission can be downloaded as a Google Earth path with markers from here.

West route flight plan (Image copyright Cnes/Spot Image 2012, Google 2012, GeoContent 2012, GeoBasis-DE/BKG 2009)
Click to show bigger, then right-click and "show graphics" for full resolution

South mission
Traveling south
08.06.2012: Transfer from Friedrichshafen to Wels
09.06.2012: Transfer from Wels to Graz, refuelling in Bad Vöslau
10.06.2012: Transfer from Graz to Ozzano, optional refuelling in Celje, refuelling in Gorizia
11.06.-09.07.2012: Scientific missions in the region, including San Pietro Capofiume and possibly Bosco Fontana, about 110 flight hours

A Google Earth path for the traveling south part can be downloaded from here.

South mission flight plan, traveling south (Image copyright Cnes/Spot Image 2012, Google 2012, MapLink/TeleAtlas 2012)
Click to show bigger, then right-click and "show graphics" for full resolution

Traveling north
10.07.2012: Transfer from Ozzano to Alessandria
11.07.2012: Transfer from Alessandria to Avignon, refuelling in Albenga, refuelling in Fayence or alternatively in Frejus.
12.07.2012: Transfer from Avignon to Lyon
13.07.2012: Scientific mission in and around Lyon
14.07.2012: Transfer from Lyon to Friedrichshafen, refuelling in Montbeliard or alternatively in Besançon

The traveling north part can be downloaded as Google Earth path from here.

South mission flight plan, traveling north (Image copyright Cnes/Spot Image 2012, Google 2012, GeoBasis-DE/BKG 2009)
Click to show bigger, then right-click and "show graphics" for full resolution

All flight routes are available in one file for display in Google Earth, to be downloaded from here.

Flight plan for all 2012 PEGASOS field missions (Image copyright Cnes/Spot Image 2012, Google 2012, MapLink/TeleAtlas 2012)
Click to show bigger, then right-click and "show graphics" for full resolution

 

Last test flights in 2011

Today’s flights have been the last test flights of the 2011 test campaign. Equipped with the photochemsitry layout the Zeppelin took off at 12am. The airship headed towards the eastern end of Lake Constance where the City Lindau and the Pfänder Mountain came into sight. After returning to the hangar the flight conditions worsened but still the airship managed to fly one more leg above Lake Constance. An altitude of 4000 ft was reached.

The Zeppelin approaching the air field.

After landing and calibration, the instruments were shut down and the last flight of the 2011 campaign was finished.

Short flight

The sun rose above the fog today, but the sky cleared up. After three days without flights we were glad to fly our instruments today. After a one hour flight the Zeppelin returned to the hangar after a fog warning.

View to the Alps with the inlet of the LOP rack

Climbing exercises in the hangar

In the hangar the top platform can be reached by means of an aerial plat form. In the field, the Zeppelin is fixed at a mast truck. If instruments on the top platform fail, they can only be reached via the mast truck.  Unfortunately, bad weather conditions prevented us from flying today so we took the opportunity to exercise climbing on the Zeppelin in the hangar.

Cabin layout exchange in the field

Today, we exchanged from cabin layout 9 (Nucleation) to cabin layout 8 (Photochemistry). To get closer to the conditions we are expecting for next year's flights, the airship was moved out of the hangar for this exchange. Using the cabin-mounted crane especially constructed by Zeppelin Luftschifftechnik, lifting the racks into the Zeppelin cabin is unproblematic.

           

Overall, this first test under tightened field conditions (frost and fog) went really well. A few uncritical points with room for improvement were found, giving us the chance to reduce the necessary time for a complete cabin layout change even further. 

Unfortunately, the weather conditions did not improve throughout the day so we could not fly.

In the late afternoon, the Zeppelin was moved back into the hangar.