We have decided to delay the Alaskan Layered Pollution and Chemical Analysis (ALPACA) field intensive that was planned for Jan-Feb 2021. This decision was made in the light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. By delaying the project, we reduce COVID-19 risks to the community and participants, which was foremost among our considerations. We were also concerned about the possibility that restrictions on travel, social distancing, and the complexity of bringing dozens of researchers from around the globe might compromise data coverage or lead to missing measurements, adversely impacting our scientific goals.
We are now planning to hold the main ALPACA field intensive in Jan-Feb 2022, stay tuned for updates via the ALPACA website or by signing up for the mailing list.
We hope that you all are safe and healthy and remain so during this challenging time.
The ALPACA organizing committee:
Bill Simpson, Kathy Law, Kerri Pratt, Jingqiu Mao, Julia Schmale, and Stephen Arnold
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The ALPACA project is partially sponsored by IASC. It seeks to close knowledge gaps in understanding of atmospheric chemical mechanisms occurring under cold and dark conditions. These gaps are exacerbated by lack of knowledge of emissions and by wintertime meteorology, which causes stagnation and hinders mixing between cleaner background and polluted air masses. In addition, there are limited measurements in regions with sub-freezing temperatures and low to absent photochemistry. Read more about ALPACA on their website.