Use of lidar measurements of aerosol extinction and backscatter coefficients as a part of assessing data from meteorological forecast models and scattering calculations

Abstract

A lidar system for determination of vertical profiles of the aerosol extinction coefficient, operating at 355 nm and 532 nm laser wavelengths, is presented. Lidar measurements will be performed within the European collaboration named EARLINET-ASOS and data will be used as a part of the assessment of a method for prediction of the observation range of optical systems in the atmosphere, based on meteorological weather forecast models. The lidar system has been extended with a detector channel for elastic scattering at 532 nm and Raman scattering from N 2 at 387 and 607 nm to enable determination of the aerosol extinction coefficient. Extinction coefficients and backscatter coefficients will later be compared to corresponding values received from meteorological predictions of the amounts and characteristics of atmospheric aerosols. The prediction will be calculated using the weather forecast model (HIRLAM) together with the atmospheric transport, chemistry and deposition model MATCH. Calculation of atmospheric aerosol scattering (Mie-calculations) will give values of extinction and backscatter coefficients which can be compared with values obtained from lidar measurements. The design of the lidar system and the first measurements will be presented.