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Quality Control Methods of Tower Data at Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39-B and the USAF Cape Canaveral 500 Foot TowerThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has long used meteorological data from weather towers located at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) and the United States Air Force’s Eastern Range(ER) in support of their various launch vehicles and climate studies. Some of the most valuable data is gathered at the Launch Complex 39-B (LC39-B) and the 500 foot tower located approximately two miles west of LC39-B and three miles north of the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). The data from LC39-B gives NASA Space Launch System (SLS) engineers valuable insight into the weather the vehicle can expect at the pad, while the 500 foot tower has a longer period of record and has been used by the Shuttle and SLS programs. However, numerous data quality (DQ) control issues have arisen when utilizing this data for analysis. In addition, instrumentation tends to deteriorate faster than normal due to the corrosive nature of the high salt content in the air. NASA’s Natural Environments branch has developed several QC databases of these towers, but these studies were for fixed periods of records. EV44 identified a need for a continually updated and QC’ed database of tower data not only to provide along term QC’ed database for vehicle and climate analyses, but also to provide the capability to investigate recent weather events such as downbursts and other high wind events. This study follows the methods developed in prior Natural Environment QC tower databases, which includes variable specific QC thresholds and checks used to generate QC flags. However, this study developed new techniques such as the development and design of the graphical user interface (GUI) for manual verification, and the creation of the final monthly QC files.
Document ID
20205004313
Acquisition Source
Marshall Space Flight Center
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
James C Brenton
(Jacobs (United States) Dallas, Texas, United States)
Maggire D Fielder
(Jacobs (United States) Dallas, Texas, United States)
Robert E Barbre Jr
(Jacobs (United States) Dallas, Texas, United States)
Date Acquired
July 9, 2020
Subject Category
Meteorology And Climatology
Meeting Information
Meeting: 101st American Meteorological Society Meeting
Location: New Orleans, LA
Country: US
Start Date: January 10, 2021
End Date: January 14, 2021
Sponsors: American Meteorological Society
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: 80MSFC18C0011
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Public Use Permitted.
Technical Review
External Peer Committee
Keywords
Quality Control
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