In my third reminiscing post I want to focus on the people of the Perdigao project team and Vale de Cobroa village, where our site is located. Spending time with these people has been very enjoyable and rewarding. The team spirit among all the project participants has allowed us to get all key instruments up and running during week one of the project. This milestone could surely not have been met without everybody offering a helping hand.
Let me start with my team from OU. During the first two weeks of the project, the OU team included me and Matt Carney. Matt is the mastermind behind miniCLAMPS: he designed the new trailer, got it ready for the Perdigao project, and also worked long hours with me in the field getting it deployed and all instruments up and running. Without his commitment this project would not have been possible.
The pictures show Matt troubleshooting the instruments in the trailer, setting up the AERI, and as fearless driver with our truck in the narrow streets of Alvaiade.
After two weeks, my PhD student Elizabeth Smith joined us. Elizabeth was already a key member of our team during the PECAN experiment and I knew I could trust her representing our team, together with Josh Gebauer, while Matt and I came back to the US for a break. Elizabeth immediately stepped up in a number of ways, volunteering for early morning soundings, helping getting the lidar scans fine-tuned and the related plotting scripts running, as well as setting up automatic emails when power issues arise at our site.
Elizabeth and Laura (student of Julie Lundquist at CU) receiving training for the radiosonde releases from Holger Voemel (NCAR)
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Elizabeth snuggling with Murphy, the cat of Felicity, our local friend.
We share the Lower Orange site with Julie Lundquist and her team, who will operate a profiling lidar and a tethered lifting system (TLS) at the site. I have known Julie for many years (we already worked together on the Joint Urban Project in OKC in 2003) and I am very glad we get to collaborate again.
Matt, Julie and I watching how the power supply to the Lower Orange site is improved on a cold morning.
Installing Julie’s profiling lidar at theLower Orange site. The lower right image shows Ludovic Bariteau, who will operate the TLS, and Ed Creegan (ARL) finalizing the power supply for the lidar and TLS.
Speaking of Ed, words cannot express how much we owe him for all the help he provided to all the teams involved in the project. Whenever, there was an issue at any site/instrument Ed would be ready to help. Julie and I decided this deserves a special Thank You:
The project would also not have been possible without the help of our Portuguese PIs Jose Palmer and Jose Carlos Matos, as well as the NCAR project manager Alison Rockwell.
Jose Carlos M., Jose P., and Alison greeting the team on arrival on April 18.
All three were instrumental in getting the instruments deployed at the various sites and in organizing the daily meetings in the ops center as well as handling all important communications and project documentation.
Jose Carlos M. helping us along with Joe Fernando (right) and other team members to carry our lidar into the Lower Orange site.
Alison nervously watching how the water vapor DIAL is transported into the Upper Orange site.
Finally, I want to mention our local friend Felicity. She lives in Vale de Cobroa, the village next to our site. She retired there about 4 years ago after an exciting career in international humanitarian aid. She was born in Scotland, but spend years living in Africa, India, and Washington DC. She is also an artist and has converted part of her house into a glass blowing studio. Each visit with Felicity is a wonderful experience, her stories are endless and her desire to make this world a better place has not stopped with retirement.
Felicity showing us some of her glass art.
Felicity’s pets Murphy (cat) and Rosie (the gentle giant!)
Bill Brown (NCAR) explaining the radiosonde instruments to Felicity
Watching the radiosonde go up with Bill, Felicity, Matt and Liz!
The last picture says it all, only the sky is the limit when people learn from each other and collaborate. I know, Liz and Josh are currently following this spirit and taking good care of miniCLAMPS. Working with such great people is truly rewarding.
Some of the photos were taken by Ludovic, who shared them with us. Thank you so much.
-Petra