WE-CAN Field Campaign
Western Wildfire Experiment for Cloud Chemistry, Aerosol Absorption and Nitrogen (WE-CAN) investigated how chemistry in western wildfire smoke affects air quality, nutrient cycles, weather and climate.
Understanding the chemistry in western wildfire smoke has major ramifications for air quality, nutrient cycles, and weather and climate. This project systematically characterized the emissions and evolution of western U.S. wildfire plumes, focusing on three sets of scientific questions related to fixed nitrogen, absorbing aerosols, and cloud activation and chemistry in wildfire plumes. The data were collected from the NCAR/NSF C-130 research aircraft.