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Research | Polar research | Arctic research
ARCTIC RESEARCH CENTRE (ARC)
General information
History
Arctic research centre, former Sodankylä Observatory continues also as a observatory function even the name changed.
Ever since 1949 has a sensor package equipped with a small radio transmitter been dispatched twice a day into the atmosphere. Lifted by a hydrogen or helium-filled balloon it collects information on atmospheric conditions from the ground upwards to heights of 30 km.
Observatory tasks still exist by many ways and will be continued forward. These tasks are named as observatory within the various other tasks of the FMI-ARC.
Arctic ozone research
FMI-ARC's own research is, in addition to numerous smaller ozone projects, mainly focussed on the polar ozone layer; research group has participated in all major European polar ozone campaigns, EASOE, SESAME and THESEO. The objective of the campaigns has been to study the behaviour of the arctic ozone layer and its underlying mechanisms. Although the basic processes are now fairly well understood, there remain important research topics, such as the effects of increased uv-irradiance on boreal nature and details of the complex interaction between ozone depletion and the greenhouse effect. One of the most important research tasks now is to to contribute to the pertinent information necessary for political decision-making on the effects the Montreal Protocol and its amendments and assess the question as to weather the regulations embodied in the protocol will be able to turn declining ozone trends around.
Stratospheric measurements
In upper air research the Centre functions as an auxiliary station in the global Network of Detection of Stratospheric Change. This facility includes various balloon-borne sonde operations, Brewer and SAOZ spectrometers, an MW-radiometer laboratory and a UV calibration laboratory. In addition, Jokioinen observatory (60.8 °N) carries out total ozone and UV observations and ozone soundings. The infrastructure also serves as an international UV research centre FUVIRC, which provides field test sites and research facilities supporting research into the ecosystem, human health and atmospheric chemistry.
Balloon soundings
The most noticeable part of the traditional weather observational work carried out at the observatory is the radiosonde ascents.
Ground-station observations every three hours on the other hand record information on the weather conditions prevailing at ground level.
In addition to normal weather observations, the traditional observational work at the observatory includes regular recordings of solar radiation, sunshine and basic hydrological quantities.
In average about 80 ozone sondes have been launched yearly since 1989 to measure the ozone profile over Sodankylä.
Since September 2006 the autosonde has done all PTU soundings. The sounding operators do not need to be at work by nights anymore.
However the operators are needed to all special soundings (ozone, aerosol and water vapour)anyway. On day time the observatory is still manned every day.
Boundary layer studies
Micrometeorological studies close to the observatory are conducted in a 48 m mast which is in a Scots pine forest on sandy Podsol. The forest is mostly 55-80 years old with some much older trees. The average tree height is 12.3 m, the tree density 2100 trunks per ha and the projected leaf area 1.2. The measurements at the mast include eddy-covariance fluxes of CO2, latent and sensible heat and momentum, radiation components, and gradients of the CO2 concentration, temperature and wind. Ambient air ozone concentrations and also gradients in the mast are measured continuously and the number concentration of condensation nuclei is measured on a campaign basis. Soil measurements include temperature and volumetric moisture gradients, heat flux and soil CO2 efflux by an automated chamber.
Clean air site of Pallas
The mountain location of Pallas, the clean-air site of about 100 km north-west of Sodankylä, offers unique possibilities for carrying out research on atmosphere-biosphere exchange and background air composition at a GAW site that is the northernmost in continental Europe.
The GAW network was established by the World Meteorological Organisation to monitor the chemical composition of the changing atmosphere.
Link to the GAW pages
Satellite Data Centre
The Satellite Data Centre of FMI-ARC started officially on 22nd of May 2002.The first stage of the centre, the processing facility for the GOMOS ozone instrument on board the Envisat environmental satellite, received operational acceptance from the European Space Agency ESA in January 2001. Envisat satellite was launched successfully from Kourou, French Guyana at 1:07 UTC in the night of 1st March 2002.
After some development and adaptation, the FMI-ARC data centre process part of the Odin ozone data, and discussions on utilisation of the Centre for other satellites too are currently ongoing.
The long-term plan is to integrate, step by step, more functions, including data reception, possibly in connection with EOS-Aura mission, gradually making the Satellite Data Centre one of the major sectors of FMI-ARC's future activities. NASA's Aura satellite (OMI=Ozone Monitoring Instrument, onboard)launched on 15th July 2004. The measurement data flow started 13th October 2004. Direct receiving, fast processing and archiving is going on in Sodankylä. The very fast delivery data is on web-pages about 15 minutes after Aura pass over Sodankylä.
The first Metop satellite of the series of meteorological operational satellites of EUMETSAT was succesfully launched on 19th October 2006. On operational phase this gives more tasks for the satellite data centre.
Links to more information about satellite data centre and to the OMI data page
The Luosto weather radar
The FMI's newest weather radar is situated on the top of Luosto fell. The Meteorological Institute provides weather radar pictures for both internal and external use. Images from the weather radar are a valuable aid to duty meteorologists in producing weather forecasts and warnings.Radar data is also useful in meteorological research. The general public has become familiar with weather radar images through TV forecasts.
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