In January 2016 the DLR research aircraft FALCON was involved in the GW-LCYCLE project. GW-LCYCLE addresses the fundamental issue of internal gravity excitation, propagation, and dissipation in the atmosphere by performing ground-based and airborne observations above Northern Scandinavia.
enviscope GmbH and its partner Gomolzig Flugzeug- und Maschinenbau (GFM) have been charged by the EOC (Earth Observation Center) at DLR in Oberpfaffenhofen with the design, manufacture, documentation, and airworthiness certification of a new camera system for deployment on the FALCON aircraft during the GW-LCYCLE mission 2016.
The camera system FALCON_SV (Skyview) is used for detection of internal gravity waves in the upper mesosphere by measuring the OH-airglow in the shortwave infrared (SWIR). For deployment of the camera system aboard the research aircraft a new optical window designed and manufactured by enviscope GmbH was installed at the top fuselage of the FALCON aircraft. The optical window provides provision for vertical mounting of the infrared camera to detect the OH-airglow in the upper mesosphere above the aircraft. Required electrical periphery of the camera system was mounted in a compact housing for integration in a FALCON standard instrument rack.
The following pictures give an impression of the FALCON_SV camera system.
