CalNex-LA Logistics

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This page is a repository for all logistical information for the CalNex-LA site. A shortcut to this page is http://tinyurl.com/calnex-log.

Dates

The dates for all the platforms of the larger CalNex campaign, including the LA ground site, are at http://tinyurl.com/calnexschedule.

The FINAL dates for the CalNex-LA site are:

  • Setup and start of measurements: May 5-14
  • Official measurement period: May 15 0:00 to June 16 0:00 (local times)
  • Tear Down: June 17-19

These dates were partially chosen to maximize overlap with other platforms, especially the NOAA P3 and the R/V Atlantis.

Location

The site is planned at Caltech. The location of the site can be seen in this Google Maps Link (easy-to-remember shortcut is http://tinyurl.com/calnex-la-site. The coordinates are 34.140582 N, -118.122455‎ (+34° 8' 26.10", -118° 7' 20.84). Please do not contact Caltech with logistical questions, rather send those to Jochen, Joost, or Jose.

Some pictures of the site location can be viewed here.

Planned Instrumentation

This information is now kept as a Google Spreadsheet due to easier formatting and modification. It can be viewed in two ways:

  • As a non-editable web page by anyone here
  • As an editable Google Spreadsheet with the link that was sent by email to everyone (email Jose if you want to be able to edit directly and did not get or have lost that link)

Travel and Lodging

  • Transportation to and from Caltech
    • The closest commercial airport to Caltech is Burbank (BUR). Los Angeles International (LAX) and Ontario (ONT) are also good options. Orange County Airport (John Wayne, SNA) is farther.
    • Some information on local transportation is here, here, here, and here.
    • Besides rental cars, a flexible and convenient option to go from the airports to Caltech and back is SuperShuttle. Reservations are highly recommended.
    • Parking at the site: TBD. It will likely be limited, and we encourage people to share rental cars to save parking spots and expenses.
  • Maps
  • Lodging:
    • Corporate Apartments: We have contacted Oakwood Corporate Housing (www.oakwood.com) about one and two-bedroom apartments. They have several complexes in Pasadena. Have a look at the flyers they prepared for us explaining what they offer and what locations they have:
    • Here are addresses and links to some the properties they have around Pasadena:
      • Gateway Villas, 290 N. Hudson Ave, Pasadena, CA 91101, property page
      • City Place Apartments, 801 E. Walnut St, Pasadena, CA 91101 property page
      • Oakwood Toluca Hills, 3600 Barham Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90068, property page
    Prices are quite reasonable with a two bedroom ranging from $115-$133 per night. Please contact Rebekah Travouillon (323.878.2100 / rtravouillon@oakwood.com) or Adrianna Gurrola (323.878.2100 / agurrola@oakwood.com) to arrange your lodging with Oakwood. They are expecting your calls. Please mention CalNex so that they know why you are calling.

Other Setup Information

For Packages and Equipment (UPS, Fedex)

Attn: UCLA ATMOSPHERIC EXPERIMENT
California Institute of Technology
391 South Hollison
Pasadena, CA 91125
Tel. 626-395-4893

 For US Mail:

Attn: UCLA ATMOSPHERIC EXPERIMENT
California Institute of Technology
CALTECH Mail Code 104H-6
Pasadena, CA 91125
Tel. 626-395-6371

  • Supplier for gas cylinders: Cameron Welding Supplies. Contact person: Dominic Rossi (909-322-8160). (Pls be clear about payment information)
  • Restrooms at the site: we are renting 4 water-flushing toilets that will be installed near the site (though not too close)
  • Power converters: for investigators coming from Europe, remember that electricity in the US is 110 V and 60 Hz, while in Europe it is typically 220 V and 50 Hz. Please verify that your equipment can work with US power, or get the appropriate adaptors or transformers. Note that some components may not work under 60 Hz. E.g. we have had this problem in the past with some sampling pumps.
  • Special resources:
    • space in freezers: TBD
    • space in refrigerators: TBD
    • access to drains for IC water (non toxic): TBD
  • Setup costs: TBD

Internet Connection at the Site

  • The lab trailer closest to the NE corner will have a switch installed in it and network cabling will be run from there to the other trailers overhead. The network cables will be brought into each trailer through a hole to be cut in the plywood Mike Anchondo is installing.
  • The three office trailers will be somewhat similar, there will be fiber brought into one trailer and from that trailer, network drops pulled to the other two trailers. Wireless access points will be installed in all three trailers for your use.
  • The lab trailers will have regular campus network services (public IP addresses, DHCP is enabled and static addresses may be obtained from hostmaster@caltech.edu once the network is in place, I will send you details once the network is operational so your users will know how to do what). The office trailers will be wireless and our campus wireless network sits behind a firewall. The wireless addresses are on a private network and not routable to the outside world (no address translation for foreign hosts to access the private hosts).
  • we will have access to the Caltech wireless on campus (e.g. cafeteria, library), but this network is weak at the site
  • A good alternative is that each group acquires a cell-phone system hotspot, such as the Mifi, which also acts as a Wifi hotstop that can connect up to 5 computers to the internet. This is a link to the Mifi from Verizon Wireless and this is the same device through Sprint. Data rates are reasonable, and cost for Verizon is $100 per Mifi and $60 per month for 5 GB of data, without the need for a contract.

Email List

  • We have created the CalNex-LA Google group to serve as email list and email archive for the project.
    • If you are subscribed to the group and want to send an email to everyone, please email <calnex-la@googlegroups.com>. (Pls do this in moderation as the usefulness of the list is inversely proportional to the email traffic in the list -- people stop paying attention if there are too many messages).
    • Two immediate advantages of this system are that people can add and remove themselves, or add others in their groups etc. at http://groups.google.com/group/calnex-la/, and that there is an automatic archive on the web for all messages sent to the list.

Science Meetings and Data Sharing

  • Science Meetings while in the field: we expect to have weekly meetings at 6 pm on Thursdays May 20, May 27, June 3, and June 10. Location will be a Caltech classroom TBD.
    • We will try to broadcast the meetings for off-site participants.
  • Data need to be submitted in ICARRT Format (html; pdf, headers pg. 8) to facilitate sharing. We would like to encourage people with continuous instruments to upload preliminary data often (daily, or every few days), and we will produce merged plots for discussion at the meetings.
  • NOAA is hosting an FTP site for sharing data. Each instrument has a folder for its data, named by the instrument identification numbers can be found here.
    • Instructions for Mac (use Cyberduck)
      1. Download Cyberduck and install. You may need to let it upgrade to the 10.6.x version before you use it.
      2. Type the following for the server address: "ftp://ftp.al.noaa.gov". If possible, set "passive mode" on and use FTP (not SFTP).
      3. Log in. (Username and password sent by email.)
    • Instructions for Windows (using Explorer)
      1. Start Windows Explorer (not Internet Explorer) by right-clicking Start and choosing Explore.
      2. Type the ftp address into the folder path: calnexla@ftp.al.noaa.gov
      3. Log in, or if you're not prompted to log in, right-click and select Login As...
      4. Now you can drag and drop files to the folder for your instrument.
      5. When you reconnect in the future, this connection will be remembered and can be found under My Network Places/ftp.al.noaa.gov
    • Instructions for Windows (using WinSCP)
      1. Set up a new connection for calnexla with server address ftp.al.noaa.gov. Change the file protocol to FTP.
      2. Under the list of options on the left, click the box to show "Advanced options".
      3. Click on the Connection option on the left and check the box for "Passive mode".
      4. If you wish to connect again later, Click on "Save..." at the bottom of the window.
      5. Connect and login with username and password sent by email
      6. If you need to make changes on future visits, click on your session, then click "Edit" on the right side of the window, and remember to Save after making your changes.
    • Instructions for Windows (using WS-FTP)
      1. Launch WS-FTP for your connection, for example, "calnexla".
      2. Look at the "Session Properties" window. Click on the "Advanced" tab.
      3. At the bottom of the Advanced window, click on the little box for "Passive transfers" and click "Apply."
      4. Connect and login with username and password sent by email
    • A note about connecting with FTP software: The FTP server is set to use "Passive Mode," a modern standard, so you'll need to verify that the FTP software you have has the proper adjustment. If you would like to share instructions for other software about where to control this setting, please share them here.

Conference calls in Preparation for the Campaign

FAQs

  • What are the chemicals used in the cooling towards 100 m south of the site/

These cooling towers are operated by Caltech. The MSDSs of the products added to the cooling water, some of which could end up in the air we sample are linked here (5 products): OXYBROM_95, CYCLE_EVAP-50_P, CYCLE_BIO-SPERSE, CYCLE_BIO-SOLV_5, and SB-ANTIFOAM_2500.

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