Accuracy of the Cloud Integrating Nephelometer
Potential error sources for measurements with the Cloud Integrating Nephelometer (CIN) are discussed and analyzed, including systematic errors of the measurement approach, flow and particle-trajectory deviations at flight velocity, ice-crystal breakup on probe surfaces, and errors in calibration and developing scaling constants. It is concluded that errors are minimal, and that the accuracy of the CIN should be close to the systematic behavior of the CIN derived in Gerber et al (2000). Absolute calibration of the CIN with a transmissometer operating co-located in a mountain-top cloud shows that the earlier scaling constant for the optical extinction coefficient obtained by other means is within 5% of the absolute calibration value, and that the CIN measurements on the Citation aircraft flights during the CRYSTAL-FACE study are accurate.