OAWL: A Multifunction Doppler Lidar for Earth Science Atmospheric Wind and Aerosol Observations

The 2017 Earth Science Decadal Survey lists 22 specific unmet observation needs (candidate targeted observables) to address 35 science and applications questions over the next decade. For some of the observables, the survey notes that they “Could potentially be addressed by a multi-function lidar designed to address two or more of the Targeted Observables.” The Optical Autocovariance Wind Lidar (OAWL) system, developed at Ball Aerospace with internal and NASA funding (from NASA’s Earth Science Technology Office), offers such multi-function capabilities. The instrument has demonstrated validated winds measurements from both ground and aircraft platforms and the technology formed the basis of a mission concept proposed to NASA’s Earth Venture Instrument opportunity. In addition to wind measurements, fringe measurements in the Quadrature Mach Zehnder Interferometer (QMZI) at the heart of the current OAWL system also provide information about aerosol to molecular scattering ratio, aerosol backscatter coefficients, and other aerosol properties. Recent studies at Ball have focused on developing these aerosol property data products and comparing the results to other HSRL data systems for verification of the measurements and validation of the system performance. We will present some of the theory behind this approach, recent results, and will discuss potential mission scenarios for addressing multiple ESDS targeted observables using OAWL.