Quantifying the Amount of Aerial Spray in the Air Over Time for Vector Control Operations

The purpose of this project was to develop a technique to measure remotely, in real-time, aerosol mass remaining in the air at various times after spraying. Lidar measurements of plumes from a spray aircraft were combined with drop size distributions and spray rates to estimate the mass of material remaining in the air and drifting in real time. The spray aircraft was equipped with Micronair atomizers releasing very fine spray. The air was very stable and the spray plume was visible in the regions scanned by the lidar for up to 5 minutes.