AURORA is currently at the University of Leeds Farm

First GAMB2LE visit to Iceland test site

A key stage of the development of the Automated Unit for Remote Observation and Research of the Atmospheric (AURORA) is field testing in Iceland. This will take place at a site operated by Menapia, our partner for drone development and deployment. The main testing phase for AURORA will start in Summer 2026 but we undertook an initial visit on the way back from Greenland Science Week to check out the site and install our first AURORA instrument.

The site, situated on the Snaefellsness Peninsula, is just a few hours drive from Reykjavik so after touching down on the flight from Nuuk we picked up a car at the airport and headed off! Menapia have been working at this site for while now, and undertook the initial drone test flights for GAMB2LE right at the start of the project in April 2025. Having seen videos and images from these flights, it was exciting to be there in person. The scenery definitely didn’t disappoint!

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Our first objective once at the site, was to install the AURORA ceilometer. A ceilometer is a type of Lidar (Light detection and ranging) instrument that uses a laser beam to make observations of clouds. By pointing a laser vertically upwards and recording how long it takes for this beam to return to the instrument after being scattered by the cloud, the height of the cloud can be determined. Other properties of the returned light, such as whether the returned beam is depolarised, can tell us about the shape of hydrometeors in the cloud. As part of the AURORA system, we will use drones to measure variables such as pressure and temperature in the atmosphere. Making these measurements is challenging in cloud, due to icing conditions that can quickly cause ice to build up on the drones and make them unable to fly. Using the ceilometer to determine where clouds are, how thick they are, and whether they contain liquid or ice is key to developing an icing detection and avoidance algorithm to decided when and where safe flights can be undertaken.

Thanks to help from John, Paddy, Woody and Linda from Menapia the ceilometer was quickly installed on top of Menapia’s shipping container. This container already has a number of drone and drone docks installed and able to be operated remotely. It was great to see these in action as they will eventually form a key component of the AURORA system. After a bit of troubleshooting, we were able to get the ceilometer up and running and start collecting data, which is now available live on our data viewer. Throughout the week, we experienced the full spectrum of Icelandic weather: from sun to snow and everything in between. Not only was it good to see how the ceilometer captured these different conditions but ensuring the AURORA can survive in harsh weather condition is crucial. It's good to know that our testing at this site will be rigorous!

Another objective of the visit was to survey the site and decide the best location for the rest of the AURORA system. We used a drone to take aerial photos to determine a suitable location - the first steps towards the deployment of the full system. Exciting stuff.

We are looking forward to being back in Iceland next year!

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