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<\/a><\/figure>Through NASA\u2019s Student Airborne Research Program<\/a>, or SARP, students learned how airborne field campaigns collect data used in atmospheric science, ecology, air quality research, and climate modeling.<\/p>\n This year\u2019s activity took place alongside an air quality campaign led by NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), giving students a chance to see how federal agencies work together to study Earth\u2019s atmosphere.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery SARP flight is more than a mission; it\u2019s a classroom in the sky, where students learn how science is planned, executed, and transformed into discovery,\u201d said NASA\u2019s Ames Research Center Earth Science Project Specialist Vidal Salazar.<\/p>\n The NOAA effort allowed NASA to build on active atmospheric research already underway in Texas. By integrating additional aircraft into the campaign, students gained access to a real-world research environment and saw how scientists collect data from the air.<\/p>\n Students attend daily lectures, take coding classes, work with instrument teams, and use campaign data and NASA\u2019s extensive archive to design, implement, and present independent research projects.<\/p>\n \u201cSARP is full of passionate individuals who work together to inspire the next generation of Earth scientists,\u201d said SARP Project Manager Joelle Hopkins.<\/p>\n Students work with NASA subject matter experts throughout the program, giving them exposure to a range of career paths in airborne science.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is great seeing different students with very diverse backgrounds exploring the next step in their academic journey,\u201d said NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center Lead Forecaster Joe Finlon. <\/p>\n The operations involved the agency\u2019s Gulfstream V (N95NA); Gulfstream C-20A (N802NA); and Gulfstream III (N520NA), as well as NOAA\u2019s WP-3D Orion (N43RF), and a King Air B200 aircraft (N46L), owned by Dynamic Aviation and contracted by NASA.<\/p>\n The WP-3D Orion conducted maneuvers as low as 1,000 feet above ground level. Owned and operated by NOAA, the aircraft is used as a hurricane hunter and has supported several airborne science missions for NASA.<\/p>\n NASA aircraft also carried instruments that support atmospheric science and ecology research. One instrument \u2013 the Airborne Visible\/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer, or AVIRIS<\/a> \u2013 was used to characterize Earth\u2019s surface and atmosphere. Additional atmosphere and air quality measurements were collected by instruments including the High Spectral Resolution Lidar 2<\/a>, GeoCAPE Airborne Spectrometer<\/a>, Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar<\/a>, and Aerosol Wind Profiler<\/a>.<\/p>\n Low-altitude flights are important for this type of work because aircraft must fly close enough to Earth\u2019s surface for instruments to collect data at the needed resolution. <\/p>\n<\/a><\/figure><\/a><\/figure>