Das Projekt "Zivilflugzeuge fuer die Fernerkundung und In-situ-Messungen in der Troposhaere und der tieferen Stratosphaere auf der Grundlage des Instrumentencontainer-Konzepts - CARIBIC" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Max-Planck-Institut für Chemie (Otto-Hahn-Institut) durchgeführt. The automated equipment to be developed, constructed, tested and integrated consists of: 1) Whole Air Sampler (WAS), consisting of compressor(s) and sample containers; 2) Multisample collector for particles in the submicrometer range; 3) In situ 3 channel particle spectrometer; 4) In situ NOx analyzer. The air samples will be analyzed in the laboratory for trace gas composition, complemented by isotopic analysis. In addition a set of accelerator and nuclear microprobe based techniques for near complete chemical and elemental speciation of the aerosol will be developed and applied. The above equipment will be integrated in an existing dedicated freight container used in the current first phase of CARIBIC, which has a more limited package concerning the aerosol and gas collection, but which has a semi continuous CO analyzer and 03 analyzer. These analyzers will complement the equipment listed above. The existing container also has a central computer control unit, power supply, cooling unit and safety devices. The choise of equipment deployed during the flights may vary, and will be optimized in the course of the series of measurement flights. The aircraft selected is a Boeing 767 owned and operated by the company LTU AIRWAYS based in Dusseldorf, which has a large and expanding fleet of medium and large size passenger aircraft. This aircraft will have a permanent air inlet system mounted below the front cargo bay. The relevant flight parameters will be made available for integration with the measurement data. There is presently relatively little control over the flight routes that can be used. The aircraft is in continuous operation and the most likely route is to the Maldives. This gives a unique possibility to fly in the troposphere and stratosphere. The inlet system is mounted below the container to minimize sample inlet tube length. The additional meteorological data consist of maps of potential vorticity and back trajectories calculated using the ECMWF data. The interpretation will use the latest chemistry-transport models.