10 research outputs found
ESA's wind Lidar mission ADM-AEOLUS; on-going scientific activities related to calibration, retrieval and instrument operation
The Earth Explorer Atmospheric Dynamics Mission
(ADM-Aeolus) of ESA will be the first-ever satellite to
provide global observations of wind profiles from
space. Its single payload, namely the Atmospheric
Laser Doppler Instrument (ALADIN) is a directdetection
high spectral resolution Doppler Wind Lidar
(DWL), operating at 355 nm, with a fringe-imaging
receiver (analysing aerosol and cloud backscatter) and a
double-edge receiver (analysing molecular backscatter).
In order to meet the stringent mission requirements on
wind retrieval, ESA is conducting various science
support activities for the consolidation of the on-ground
data processing, calibration and sampling strategies.
Results from a recent laboratory experiment to study
Rayleigh-Brillouin scattering and improve the
characterisation of the molecular lidar backscatter
signal detected by the ALADIN double-edge Fabry-
Perot receiver will be presented in this paper. The
experiment produced the most accurate ever-measured
Rayleigh-Brillouin scattering profiles for a range of
temperature, pressure and gases, representative of
Earth’s atmosphere. The measurements were used to
validate the Tenti S6 model, which is implemented in
the ADM-Aeolus ground processor.
First results from the on-going Vertical Aeolus
Measurement Positioning (VAMP) study will be also
reported. This second study aims at the optimisation of
the ADM-Aeolus vertical sampling in order to
maximise the information content of the retrieved
winds, taking into account the atmospheric dynamical
and optical heterogeneity. The impact of the Aeolus
wind profiles on Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP)
and stratospheric circulation modelling for the different
vertical sampling strategies is also being estimated
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LIVAS: A 3-D multi-wavelength aerosol/cloud database based on CALIPSO and EARLINET
We present LIVAS (LIdar climatology of Vertical Aerosol Structure for space-based lidar simulation studies), a 3-D multi-wavelength global aerosol and cloud optical database, optimized to be used for future space-based lidar end-to-end simulations of realistic atmospheric scenarios as well as retrieval algorithm testing activities. The LIVAS database provides averaged profiles of aerosol optical properties for the potential spaceborne laser operating wavelengths of 355, 532, 1064, 1570 and 2050 nm and of cloud optical properties at the wavelength of 532 nm. The global database is based on CALIPSO observations at 532 and 1064 nm and on aerosol-type-dependent backscatter- and extinction-related Ångström exponents, derived from EARLINET (European Aerosol Research Lidar Network) ground-based measurements for the UV and scattering calculations for the IR wavelengths, using a combination of input data from AERONET, suitable aerosol models and recent literature. The required spectral conversions are calculated for each of the CALIPSO aerosol types and are applied to CALIPSO backscatter and extinction data corresponding to the aerosol type retrieved by the CALIPSO aerosol classification scheme. A cloud optical database based on CALIPSO measurements at 532 nm is also provided, neglecting wavelength conversion due to approximately neutral scattering behavior of clouds along the spectral range of LIVAS. Averages of particle linear depolarization ratio profiles at 532 nm are provided as well. Finally, vertical distributions for a set of selected scenes of specific atmospheric phenomena (e.g., dust outbreaks, volcanic eruptions, wild fires, polar stratospheric clouds) are analyzed and spectrally converted so as to be used as case studies for spaceborne lidar performance assessments. The final global data set includes 4-year (1 January 2008–31 December 2011) time-averaged CALIPSO (Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations) data on a uniform grid of 1° × 1° with the original high vertical resolution of CALIPSO in order to ensure realistic simulations of the atmospheric variability in lidar end-to-end simulations
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Experimental investigation of ion-ion recombination under atmospheric conditions
We present the results of laboratory measurements of the ion–ion recombination coefficient at different temperatures, relative humidities and concentrations of ozone and sulfur dioxide. The experiments were carried out using the Cosmics Leaving OUtdoor Droplets (CLOUD) chamber at CERN, the walls of which are made of conductive material, making it possible to measure small ions. We produced ions in the chamber using a 3.5 GeV c−1 beam of positively charged pions (π+) generated by the CERN Proton Synchrotron (PS). When the PS was switched off, galactic cosmic rays were the only ionization source in the chamber. The range of the ion production rate varied from 2 to 100 cm−3 s−1, covering the typical range of ionization throughout the troposphere. The temperature ranged from −55 to 20 °C, the relative humidity (RH) from 0 to 70 %, the SO2 concentration from 0 to 40 ppb, and the ozone concentration from 200 to 700 ppb. The best agreement of the retrieved ion–ion recombination coefficient with the commonly used literature value of 1.6 × 10−6 cm3 s−1 was found at a temperature of 5 °C and a RH of 40 % (1.5 ± 0.6) × 10−6 cm3 s−1. At 20 °C and 40 % RH, the retrieved ion–ion recombination coefficient was instead (2.3 ± 0.7) × 10−6 cm3 s−1. We observed no dependency of the ion–ion recombination coefficient on ozone concentration and a weak variation with sulfur dioxide concentration. However, we observed a more than fourfold increase in the ion–ion recombination coefficient with decreasing temperature. We compared our results with three different models and found an overall agreement for temperatures above 0 °C, but a disagreement at lower temperatures. We observed a strong increase in the recombination coefficient for decreasing relative humidities, which has not been reported previously
Experimental investigation of ion-ion recombination under atmospheric conditions
Cited By :16 Export Date: 30 January 2018We present the results of laboratory measurements of the ion-ion recombination coefficient at different temperatures, relative humidities and concentrations of ozone and sulfur dioxide. The experiments were carried out using the Cosmics Leaving OUtdoor Droplets (CLOUD) chamber at CERN, the walls of which are made of conductive material, making it possible to measure small ions. We produced ions in the chamber using a 3.5 GeV c(-1) beam of positively charged pions (pi(+)) generated by the CERN Proton Synchrotron (PS). When the PS was switched off, galactic cosmic rays were the only ionization source in the chamber. The range of the ion production rate varied from 2 to 100 cm(-3) s(-1), covering the typical range of ionization throughout the troposphere. The temperature ranged from -55 to 20 degrees C, the relative humidity (RH) from 0 to 70 %, the SO2 concentration from 0 to 40 ppb, and the ozone concentration from 200 to 700 ppb. The best agreement of the retrieved ion-ion recombination coefficient with the commonly used literature value of 1.6 x 10(-6) cm(3) s(-1) was found at a temperature of 5 degrees C and a RH of 40% (1.5 +/- 0.6) x 10(-6) cm(3) s(-1). At 20 degrees C and 40% RH, the retrieved ion-ion recombination coefficient was instead (2.3 +/- 0.7) x 10(-6) cm(3) s(-1). We observed no dependency of the ion-ion recombination coefficient on ozone concentration and a weak variation with sulfur dioxide concentration. However, we observed a more than fourfold increase in the ion-ion recombination coefficient with decreasing temperature. We compared our results with three different models and found an overall agreement for temperatures above 0 degrees C, but a disagreement at lower temperatures. We observed a strong increase in the recombination coefficient for decreasing relative humidities, which has not been reported previously.Peer reviewe