Investigation into High Spectral Resolution Lidar Technologies

Abstract

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) found in their 2007 report that aerosol radiative forcing contributed larger uncertainties to estimates affecting future climate change than any other radiative forcing factor. Lidar is a tool with which this uncertainty can be reduced, increasing our understanding of the impact of aerosols on climate change. Lidar, or laser radar, is a monostatic active remote sensing technique used to measure aerosols and particulates in the atmosphere, with accuracies comparable to in-situ measurements (Russell 2002). High Spectral Resolution Lidar (HSRL) systems use a narrow band filter to spectrally separate Doppler broadened aerosol and molecular back-scattered return signals, which allows for range resolved profiles of aerosol extinction and backscatter. The narrow band filter is a key component, for which two novel approaches are currently being used: NASA Langley Research Center has implemented a wide-angle Michelson interferometer in the second version of their airborne HSRL, and Montana State University is using a spherical Fabry-Perot interferometer in a ground based HSRL. In this research, a comprehensive comparative analysis of these two interferometric filters is performed, the result of which is a methodology for the design of narrow band filters for HSRL systems. The techniques presented identify the critical components and analyze the performance of each filter based on the spectral and angular properties, as well as the efficiency.