This multipurpose particle spectrometer includes three Droplet Measurement Technologies instruments plus temperature and relative humidity sensors that are packaged into a single, integrated measurement system. The CAPS provides the following data:
- Aerosol particle and cloud hydrometeor size distributions from 0.51 to 50 µm
- Precipitation size distributions from 25 µm to 1550 µm, or 15-930 um with optional 15-micron resolution
- Particle optical properties (refractive index)
- Particle shape assessments (discrimination between water and ice for probes with depolarization feature)
- Liquid water content from 0.01 to 3 g/m3
- Aircraft velocity
- Atmospheric temperature and pressure
This instrument replaces the older PMS/PMI FSSP-100, FSSP-300, 2D-C, 2D-P and KLWC and can be used in many applications, including weather modification, aircraft icing, hurricane and storm research, and agricultural and industrial spray characterization.