Field Campaign Organization

A shortcut to this page is http://tinyurl.com/JG-Field-Org.

This page is a repository of information about how to organize a field campaign. It is intended for a person who has some time to deal with the organizational issues. It was created based on Jose's experience during the SOAR, and DAURE CalNex-LA campaigns, among others, but the goal is that multiple people contribute with their experiences to improve the page and keep it up-to-date.

Before the campaign starts

• Communication
  • Create an email list for communication about the study. Make sure it is spam-protected (e.g. only people subscribed to it can send emails to it) as otherwise it may not be useful. For recent campaigns we have set up email lists using Google Groups which provide an easy-to-use web interface, the ability for people to add and remove themselves, and archiving of email list messages.
  • Create a Wiki or Web page for the Scientific and Logistical information for the study. (DAURE examples: science page and logistics page); (BEACHON-RoMBAS examples: science page and logistics page)
  • Create a Google Spreadsheet with a list of all instrumentation that will be deployed as it becomes known with key details such as technique, PI, operators, space needs, power needs, special needs (e.g. solvent or radiation source use, inlet sharing, instrument location etc.). Use this for other dynamic logistical planning, documentation. (CalNex example, BEACHON-RoMBAS example, SOAS example.
  • Create a Google Spreadsheet with the dates in which different people will participate and their contact info (DAURE example; BEACHON-RoMBAS example)
  • Conference calls with the participants before the campaign are very useful to make sure that everyone is on the same page, and to avoid surprises. http://www.freeconferencecall.com is a very useful service for this purpose (free and works well). See example from BEACHON-RoMBAS telecon for example of some issues that may be relevant to early planning here (slides 27-34).

• Electrical power
  • Ask campaign participants to measure the power consumptions of their instruments using a Kill-a-Watt or similar device. Just reading the power off the device may be very inaccurate. Be sure to remind people to include everything in their power accounting such as computers, additional pumps, etc.
  • Make sure that enough power will be available at the field site. This is the number 1 problem in field campaigns, when the experimentalists show up, it is discovered that there is not enough power or it has not been set up properly, and it is very costly and time-consuming to fix that.
  • If needed for international campaigns, get plug adapters and/or transformers for the local power. These World Maps show the voltage and plug types used around the world. Note that some 60 Hz pumps with AC motors do not work under 50 Hz power.
  • The following lists of plug types can be useful: NEMA Straight Blade and NEMA Locking Blade
  • Make sure to bring an AC Socket Tester and a Kill-a-Watt in your hand-luggage so that you can start testing the power outlets immediately after arrival, without having to wait for the arrival of shipments.

• Other Logistics
  • Make a space budget and compare with the available space. If space is tight, create a floor plan specifying the location of the different instruments and circulate it.
  • If rental trailers are needed, those from Mobile Mini have worked well in previous US campaigns.
  • Get internet connection of sufficient speed at the sites
  • For shipping of field equipment to international sites, the best way is to use an ATA Carnet with this instructions in the CIRES Website
  • Find out the location, and post/print Google Maps to stores that supply hardware (such as Home Depot in the US) and electronics (such as Fry's or Radio Shack in the US).

• Data sharing
  • Establish a data format (DAURE example)
  • Propose a policy for sharing data and circulate it among the campaign participants (DAURE example)
  • Create an SFTP server for uploading both preliminary and post-campaign data (DAURE example).
  • Ask people to install the software needed to access an SFTP site: e.g. WinSCP for windows and Cyberduck for Mac

During the Setup Period Before Measurements Start

• Verify that the power outlets are wired properly with an AC socket tester
• Verify that the voltage of the power outlets corresponds to expectations
• Label all the outlets with their circuit number with a sharpie. This should be done before the instrumentation is installed. The simplest way is to switch off all the breakers but one, see which plugs still have power and mark them, then add a 2nd breaker etc. There is also a Circuit Finder tool than can be bought at Home Depot and similar stores, which allows identifying circuits without turning off the power. (Remove the breaker panel cover if it doesn't work well with the cover on, metal covers in particular reduce the signal enough that this can be a problem). There are also more expensive professional-grade tools to do the same such as the Greenlee 2011.
• If possible and if this information is not already known, measure the power consumption of the different pumps and instruments with a Kill-a-Watt
• Create a power budget and post it in a prominent place at the site
• Tape over power outlets that cannot be used because the circuits are already maxed out, and write a note of who to contact with questions about the outlet.

When the campaign is starting to gather data

• Remind people to start submitting data to the SFTP site and to update them every few days
• Create a spreadsheet showing which data has been uploaded, has been acquired but not uploaded yet, and won't be available due to instrument problems DAURE example
• Make sure the data which is starting to be submitted includes enough header information, including the time used (e.g. local, standard, UTC), the units for the m3 (STP and which definition, ambient, other) for concentrations reported ug m-3, etc.
• Establish a schedule for science meetings (once a week worked well for DAURE, but this depends on how many sites are there and their distances etc.)
• Start plotting all the data in "Master Plots" for each site (see Examples for DAURE). This allows detecting early problems with instruments and data formats, agreement or differences between similar instruments, etc.

After the measurements are over

• Discuss and agree on dates for uploading revised and final data to the data server. 4 months after the campaign is typical for revised data, and ~9 months is typical for final data.
• Organize conference calls, starting ~3 months after the end of the campaign, to discuss preliminary data and results
• Agree on a date and location for a data analysis meeting, normally 9 months to 1 year after the campaign (if it happens earlier people normally have not digested the data yet and it is less useful)
• Agree on the main conference venues / special sessions for presentation of results (e.g. Fall AGU, AAAR, EGU...)