Note (August 5, 2024): A new status update on the Bankhead National Forest atmospheric observatory has been published. The instrumentation plan has been updated as of July 26, 2024.
Guidance for proposing field research at this observatory is available. Read Appendix E of the ARM Field Campaign Guidelines, starting on Page 27 (labeled in the document as Page E.1). Guest instruments will not be supportable at this observatory until November 2024 at the earliest.
The Bankhead National Forest (BNF) atmospheric observatory is a long-term mobile observatory being established by the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility in northwestern Alabama. The BNF is currently expected to be operational for five years, starting in 2024.
Scientists will use data from the BNF to learn about clouds, aerosols, and land-atmosphere interactions, which in turn will lead to improvements in models of the Earth’s climate.