JAWS

The Joint Airport Weather Studies (JAWS) Project, formed in 1980, conducted a major field investigation during the summer of 1982 (15 May to 13 August, inclusive) in and around Denver, Colorado. The project was jointly administrated by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and the University of Chicago including collaboration with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The principle focus of JAWS was the convective microburst event, a small region of intense downflow and associated outflow which occurs in the convective boundary layer, usually but not always associated with thunderstorms. Microbursts can be lethal for a jet aircraft on takeoff or landing because of the extreme magnitude of the flows.

Science Objectives

The JAWS effort concentrated on three aspects of microburst-induced, low-level wind shear:

• Basic scientific investigation of microburst origins, lifecycles, and velocity structures
• Various aspects of aircraft performance, including numerical models, manned flight simulators, instrumented research aircraft response, and operational air carrier performance
• Low-level wind shear detection and warning using surface sensing, airborne systems, and radar sensing

PAM station for JAWS. Photo courtesy UCAR. (Click for Full Resolution)

JAWS broadened the general weather hazard database by: 

1. providing data appropriate for real-time detection and warning of thunderstorm hazards for dissemination to the public and the aviation community;
2. examining aircraft performance characteristics in wind shear conditions;
3. providing a suitable real-time test bed for display software development;
4. providing additional means to identify which scales of atmospheric motion were pertinent to applied objectives;
5. providing an excellent test of optimal Doppler radar placement suitable for metropolitan and airport terminal coverage; and
6. providing detailed perspective on the microburst hazard. Concurrent with JAWS, the Denver Airport Transportation Systems Center (TSC) sponsored a project to study the effect of weather on air traffic operations. Data were collected by photographing air traffic control terminals and by transcribing air traffic radio channels.

Facilities

All photos copyright University Corporation for Atmospheric Research unless otherwise noted.