AVUELO has encountered one of the wettest and cloudiest dry seasons in memory.
AVUELO has encountered one of the wettest and cloudiest dry seasons in memory. After a series of great acquisitions over core and important areas, our airborne science has stood down for several days with heavy cloud cover. So, what do AVUELO and a Joni Mitchell song have in common? She sings in “Both Sides Now” about how beautiful and enchanting clouds are but concludes:
“But now they only block the sun
They rain and they snow on everyone
So many things I would have done
But clouds got in my way”
They haven’t snowed on us in Panama, but they have definitely gotten in our way. Unusual weather, possibly associated with weak La Niña conditions, is resulting in more moisture transport to Panama and Costa Rica and fewer opportunities for flights, though AVUELO’s core areas and critical sites are largely covered. While the aircraft has been in the hangar, the team has met for no-go and planning meetings each day, and the field teams continue to obtain samples at a steady pace.
During the past few days, canopy trees at several sites, including from tall mature forests and younger stands, as well as samples from mangrove forests, have all come into the lab. Sampling and processing continue even as the aircraft waits for better weather.
Read more at NASA Earth Observatory
Photo Credit: FelixMittermeier via Pixabay
