On July 6 to 8, Nate May (third year grad student, Pratt Lab) and Isabel Colon-Bernal (first year grad student, Ault Lab) conducted a small Field Study on the West Coast of Michigan during a Large Wave Event to collect Lake Spray Aerosol samples and Lake water from Lake Michigan.
We camped at the Van Buren State Park near South Haven, MI. We arrived on Monday, July 6th, at about 11pm. We setup the camp and a sample to run overnight at the campsite using the Microanalysis Particle Sampler (MPS) and the AeroTrak Handheld Airborne Particle Counter. The MPS is a 3 stage impactor; Stage 1 is >2um, Stage 2 is 700nm-2um, Stage 3 is <700nm. The AeroTrak will give us a size distribution of the particles present in the atmosphere during the sampling period. The next morning, July 7th, we ran a sample from 8am to around noon on the campsite.
Then we took the instruments to the beach where we collected a sample from around 2pm to 5pm because the battery packs had died. Back at the campsite, we collected another sample over night and one in the morning on July 8th, from 9am to 1pm. Before coming back to U-M, we collected some lake water in a Nalgene 8L bottle.
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| The waves were up to 7 feet high on the South Beaches of the Great Lakes due to a stiff 15-25mph south wind. |
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| Nate May (Pratt Lab) standing next to the instrumental setup |
Then we took the instruments to the beach where we collected a sample from around 2pm to 5pm because the battery packs had died. Back at the campsite, we collected another sample over night and one in the morning on July 8th, from 9am to 1pm. Before coming back to U-M, we collected some lake water in a Nalgene 8L bottle.
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| Lake Michigan Beach after the Large Wave Event |
