Lidar Measurements Indicating Atmospheric Inhomogeneities.
Abstract
Various methods for interpreting lidar data require that the atmospheric aerosol distributions be homogeneous in the horizontal direction. While many workers in aerosol extinction and lidar backscatter report that rarely, if ever, is the atmosphere sufficiently homogeneous horizontally for this to be a good assumption, most of them make the assumption anyway, or select cases where they say that, for their purposes, it is sufficiently homogeneous horizontally. This document considers some of the findings reported in the literature and presents some examples of lidar data obtained off the bluff at Point Loma in San Diego, California, showing pronounced aerosol inhomogeneities in the horizontal. It is concluded that while the lidar may be useful for studying atmospheric aerosols when used in conjunction with other meteorological measurements, it probably cannot be used as a stand-alone device for determining visibility. Keywords: Aerosols; Backscatteing; Extinction; Lidar; Visibility.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 01, 1986
- Accession Number
- ADA166440
Entities
People
- Merle R. Paulson