DLR Campaign - Deepwave New Zealand 2014

We had the honour of being invited to participate in the Deep Propagating Wave Experiment (DEEPWAVE) field campaign. The Institute of Atmospheric Physics of the German Aerospace Center (DLR), in particular the Middle Atmosphere matrix group, has contributed to DEEPWAVE with airborne and ground-based instruments for atmospheric measurements. We brought the FALCON aircraft to Christchurch airport, and were involved in flight planning and weather forecasting. Our team of physicists, meteorologists, modelers, engineers and pilots was present at New Zealand before, during and after the DEEPWAVE field campaign period. Our first ground-based TELMA lidar was set up at NIWA station in the wonderful city of Lauder in Central Otago. From there, we also launched radiosondes.

The DEEPWAVE campaign was dedicated to the study of atmospheric gravity waves. Gravity waves are excited by air flow over New Zealands Southern Alps, are modified by the tropopaus and propagate through the atmosphere. Several in-situ and remote sensing instruments detect these waves by means of air density or temperature variations in an altitude range between 0 and 120 km at New Zealands South Island and the surrounding Southern Ocean. Measurements by aircraft were coordinated with ground-based measurements to study the dynamical and chemical processes in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere.

We thank the principal investigator Dave Fritts from GATS Inc., Boulder, and all our international colleagues. It was great to work together with you sharing this common goal. We especially thank the team of the NIWA station in Lauder for hosting not only our instrument, but also the scientists and their families for several months in 2014. You live in a spectacular place and have been very kind to us. We think often of you.