Space-borne clear air lidar measurements in the presence of broken cloud

A number of proposed lidar systems, such as ESA’s AEOLUS (formerly ADM) and DIAL missions (e.g. WALES) are to make use of lidar returns in clear air. However, on average, two-thirds of the globe is covered in cloud. Hence, there is a strong likelihood that data from these instruments may be contaminated by cloud. Similarly, optically thick cloud may not be penetrated by a lidar pulse, resulting in unobservable regions that are overshadowed by the cloud. To address this, it is suggested, for example, in AEOLUS, that a number of consecutive short sections of lidar data (between 1 and 3.5 km in length) be tested for cloud contamination or for overshadowing and only those that are unaffected by cloud be used to derive atmospheric profiles. The probability of obtaining profiles to near ground level using this technique is investigated both analytically and using UV airborne lidar data recorded during the CLARE’98 campaign. These data were measured in the presence of broken cloud on a number of flights over southern England over a fourday period and were chosen because the lidar used has the same wavelength, footprint and could match the along-track spacing of the proposed AEOLUS lidar.