1 00:00:01,270 --> 00:00:05,460 This mobile laboratory has been deployed for a very specific reason. 2 00:00:05,460 --> 00:00:08,310 The Shady Fire is burning nearby, 3 00:00:08,310 --> 00:00:15,160 and this team is gathering data that you can only get at night. 4 00:00:15,160 --> 00:00:16,330 5 00:00:16,330 --> 00:00:20,550 NASA Explorers 6 00:00:20,550 --> 00:00:21,530 7 00:00:21,530 --> 00:00:22,460 Episode Two 8 00:00:22,460 --> 00:00:25,000 Follow That Plume! 9 00:00:25,000 --> 00:00:27,330 Fires 10 00:00:27,330 --> 00:00:28,710 11 00:00:28,710 --> 00:00:32,420 Over the next several weeks NASA and NOAA are teaming up 12 00:00:32,420 --> 00:00:36,920 in the field to studying smoke from wildfires and agricultural burning. 13 00:00:36,920 --> 00:00:42,170 Here’s what 24 hours looks like in the life of these fire chasers. 14 00:00:42,170 --> 00:00:45,130 The team’s been keeping a close eye on the Shady Fire, 15 00:00:45,130 --> 00:00:49,620 burning just four hours northeast of the base of operations. 16 00:00:49,620 --> 00:00:50,390 Gowen Field, Idaho Air National Guard 17 00:00:50,390 --> 00:00:54,770 After several days of watching the fire grow, the forecasting team decides 18 00:00:54,770 --> 00:00:59,150 to deploy the mobile laboratory and the NASA and NOAA planes. 19 00:00:59,150 --> 00:01:02,320 The ground crew and pilots are already preparing the plane 20 00:01:02,320 --> 00:01:05,970 by the time the forecasters give their daily briefing. 21 00:01:05,970 --> 00:01:09,600 The more we learn about smoke, the better we'll understand health. 22 00:01:09,600 --> 00:01:11,980 My name is Amber Soja and 23 00:01:11,980 --> 00:01:16,700 my role here is to determine what fires we should target. 24 00:01:16,700 --> 00:01:17,260 25 00:01:17,260 --> 00:01:24,850 Smoke is related to respiratory illness, heart attacks and even death. 26 00:01:24,850 --> 00:01:28,000 For some of our scientists, understanding pollution 27 00:01:28,000 --> 00:01:30,960 has defined the course of their life’s work. 28 00:01:30,960 --> 00:01:31,460 29 00:01:31,460 --> 00:01:33,410 I’m a physical chemist 30 00:01:33,410 --> 00:01:40,610 but I’m also from what 60 Minutes called the most polluted city in America - Anniston, Alabama. 31 00:01:40,610 --> 00:01:43,380 When the opportunity came along to do this type of work, 32 00:01:43,380 --> 00:01:45,850 I really resonated with it. 33 00:01:45,850 --> 00:01:50,380 Dr. Bruce Anderson is the Langley Aerosol Research Group Lead, 34 00:01:50,380 --> 00:01:54,630 and a seasoned veteran when it comes to doing fieldwork in remote places. 35 00:01:54,630 --> 00:02:02,030 By 3pm, both the NASA DC-8 and the Mobile Laboratory are about ready to go. 36 00:02:02,030 --> 00:02:06,200 Bruce and his team begin with a five hour drive to reach the fire. 37 00:02:06,200 --> 00:02:08,230 We’ll catch up with them later. 38 00:02:08,230 --> 00:02:12,480 While the ground crew, pilots and safety techs prepare for what will 39 00:02:12,480 --> 00:02:16,740 likely be six hours of flying through smoke plume after smoke plume, 40 00:02:16,740 --> 00:02:22,110 the scientists ready their instruments to capture data from the notorious Shady Fire. 41 00:02:22,110 --> 00:02:24,010 42 00:02:24,010 --> 00:02:28,050 Thirty minutes into the flight and the team has already reached the fire. 43 00:02:28,050 --> 00:02:30,380 Here’s where the work begins. 44 00:02:30,380 --> 00:02:37,080 These flights are rare opportunities for scientists, so not a moment is wasted. 45 00:02:37,080 --> 00:02:38,380 46 00:02:38,380 --> 00:02:42,940 I think that studying fire and chemistry, 47 00:02:42,940 --> 00:02:47,340 it only comes together when you have a diverse team of scientists 48 00:02:47,340 --> 00:02:51,850 As the sun starts to set, the plume is harder for the pilots to see 49 00:02:51,850 --> 00:02:56,760 and around 10pm, the plane heads home after a successful flight. 50 00:02:56,760 --> 00:03:02,520 Smoke sinks lower to the ground at night and sometimes accumulates in valleys 51 00:03:02,520 --> 00:03:06,620 which is exactly where Bruce and his team are waiting for it. 52 00:03:06,620 --> 00:03:08,330 53 00:03:08,330 --> 00:03:13,610 We'll set out, drive up there, find a place to position the van 54 00:03:13,610 --> 00:03:19,120 then start cranking up instruments. I takes about a half hour to an hour 55 00:03:19,120 --> 00:03:21,740 to get everything running and calibrated. 56 00:03:21,740 --> 00:03:27,570 It's a guaranteed bad night's sleep, but you know, you can tolerate anything for a day or two. 57 00:03:27,570 --> 00:03:32,570 This team of five scientists will be up almost every half hour checking measurements, 58 00:03:32,570 --> 00:03:35,380 replacing filters and at one point, 59 00:03:35,380 --> 00:03:39,450 repositioning the van to capture emissions more effectively. 60 00:03:39,450 --> 00:03:39,990 61 00:03:39,990 --> 00:03:46,420 It’s a long, cold night, but eventually it’s dawn and time to head back to town. 62 00:03:46,420 --> 00:03:51,240 By 7:30, the forecasters have already been awake for at least two hours 63 00:03:51,240 --> 00:03:54,630 selecting which fires the science team should target that day 64 00:03:54,630 --> 00:03:58,600 - including a scheduled return to the Shady Fire. 65 00:03:58,600 --> 00:04:02,690 In about two hours, the plane will be bustling with scientists 66 00:04:02,690 --> 00:04:06,750 preparing their instruments for the day’s flight 67 00:04:06,750 --> 00:04:10,390 and the whole cycle will start all over again. 68 00:04:10,390 --> 00:04:14,550 69 00:04:14,550 --> 00:04:16,620 On the next episode of NASA Explorers 70 00:04:16,620 --> 00:04:17,830 71 00:04:17,830 --> 00:04:23,720 I feel like the work that I do, the knowledge that I’m trying to pull together 72 00:04:23,720 --> 00:04:29,150 Is important for the human race, for our country. 73 00:04:29,150 --> 00:04:31,940 74 00:04:31,940 --> 00:04:35,030 Episode Three: The Carbon Problem 75 00:04:35,030 --> 00:04:38,699