ANTARCTIC EXPEDITIONS
King Sejong Research Station
King Sejong Station (KSJ) is situated on King George Island, just of the Antarctic Peninsula at approximately 62.23°S, 58.79°W. Positioned in the polar front zone, KSJ is often subjected to the passage of cyclonic systems, resulting in strong winds and overcast skies. Changes in large-scale atmospheric circulation can influence the polar front, affecting the weather conditions experienced at KSJ. As such, KSJ provides an excellent opportunity to monitor atmospheric activity in Antarctica.
Measurements
Radiosondes with high temporal resolution (every 3-6 hours) were launched during targeted events (including ARs), in addition to the regular radiosondes launched at Escudero station (daily at 00 UTC), to characterize warm/moist air intrusions associated with extratropical cyclones. 8 of the 18 radiosondes successfully launched during the campaign were equipped with Anasphere liquid and supercooled liquid water content (LWC+SLWC) sensors. Figure 2 shows an example of the data obtained from the radiosondes during the campaign.
At the KSJ station, a vertically pointing K-band (24 GHz) micro rain radar (MRR) was installed (Figure 3) providing continuous measurements of vertical precipitation profiles with a vertical resolution of 35 m and a temporal resolution of 1 minute from approximately 100 m to 1 km above ground level. Figure 4 shows an example of the data obtained with the MRR compared to the ERA5 data.At the KSJ station, a vertically pointing K-band (24 GHz) micro rain radar (MRR) was installed (Figure 3) providing continuous measurements of vertical precipitation profiles with a vertical resolution of 35 m and a temporal resolution of 1 minute from approximately 100 m to 1 km above ground level. Figure 4 shows an example of the data obtained with the MRR compared to the ERA5 data.
Snowfall, rainfall and surface snow samples were collected for further laboratory analysis of their stable isotope composition. These observations will be analyzed together with the back trajectories and used to constrain the moisture source and pathways information.
Cruise campaigns
Southern Ocean Clouds project
Irina Gorodetskaya participated in PICCAASO's Southern Ocean Cloud (SOC) project.
SOC studies mixed-phase clouds over the Southern Ocean to improve climate model accuracy, focusing on cloud-forming nuclei sources, secondary ice production, and aerosol processes. Since 2022, measurements have been taken at Rothera Station, with airborne campaigns in 2023 and 2024 and a research cruise in late 2024. The project develops better cloud parameterizations for climate models to reduce biases and improve global climate predictions.
Location: Antarctic Peninsula and nearby oceans
Duration: 2022–2024
