NOAA's Earth System Research Lab deploys a coherent Doppler lidar on the research vessel Ronald H. Brown. Doppler lidar wind data acquired over the Gulf of Mexico during the 2006 Texas Air Quality Study (TexAQS II) has been used to investigate marine boundary layer conditions including boundary layer rolls, surface streaks, jets, variability of mixing height, and the relationship between mixing height and cloud base height. Additional data from the upcoming VAMOS-Ocean-Cloud-Air-Land Study (VOCALS) will be used to supplement the study.