NASA using converted spy planes to collect polar data

NASA is using a converted Cold War era U2 spy plane to study Alaskan and Arctic Ocean ice pack conditions and diminishing summer sea ice.

The ER-2 aircraft, a high-altitude research jet, is a refashioned spy plane received from the Air Force in 1971, Tech Times reported.

Its light frame allows it to climb to a very high altitude; maximum of 12.5 miles.

Between July 12 and August 1, two pilots, Denis Steele and Tim Williams, will take turns in piloting the ER-2. According to News Miner, one of the two pilots will pilot the aircraft and collect data, the other will stay on the ground to assist during landing and takeoff, and to facilitate communication between the aircraft and the ground crew.

Sea ice data is collected by a laser altimeter which measures ice depth. The device, the Multiple Altimeter Beam Experimental Lidar (MABEL), is housed in the aircraft’s nose.

Data collected will allow researchers to develop computer algorithms to analyze the information and ice depth readings collected in the future by the Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2 or ICESat-2, due to launch in 2017.
According to NASA, the ER-2 is one of the few powered vehicles in the world capable of gathering data similar to that collected by satellites.
Each of the ER-2 six missions will last eight hours, for a total of 48 hours of flight time, NASA said.

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