The goal of this group is to detect landfalling TCs using various state-of-the-art observational techniques in different spatiotemporal scales.

1 Exploring TC surrounding environmental features

       The UPDRAFT plans to set up an observational network from surface to space to measure environmental helicity and moisture in the environmental scale. There are three major observational tools. The first is 6-hr enhancement of radiosondes (fixed and mobile) during TC-influencing periods. These intensive radiosondes will be placed in the Southeastern China, the Yangtze River region, Taiwan, Korea and Japan.

2 Detecting thermal and dynamical characteristics in the TC vortex

       The UPDRAFT will use various unconventional platforms to estimating changes in CAPE, atmospheric stability and potential vorticity in the vortex scale. Many observational platforms will be applied in this project, including 6-hr enhancement of radiosondes, wind profilers, ground-based microwave radiometers, fixed and mobile radars, GPM dual-frequency precipitation radar, satellites (e.g. FY2 and Himawari-8), aircraft dropsonde, rocket dropsonde, and so on.

3 Observing aerosol characteristics associated with TCs

       The UPDRAFT tends to estimate the distribution of hydrometeors from observed aerosol characteristics (e.g. number, size, hydrophobicity). Videosonde, disdrometer, LIDARs, millimeter radars, polarimetric radar, and vertically pointing microwave X-band radar will be employed to observe the microphysical characteristics of aerosols.

4 Measuring various components in land surface process and planetary boundary layer processes

       On one hand, the UPDRAFT will monitor urban effect-induced changes in surface heat flux, moisture flux and anthropogenic aerosol distribution. On the other hand, the UPDRAFT will observe several key planetary boundary layer process, such as soil moisture, surface inhomogeneities and boundary layer rolls. The main observational tools includes fixed and mobile boundary layer tower measurements, ground based LIDARs, Doppler radars, wind profilers, disdrometers, rain gauges, millimetre Ku- and W- band radars, and satellite microwave measurements.