Mixed Boundary Layer Height Determined from LiDAR Data During HU GRASP

Lidar measurements were collected during the month of April 2012 during HU GRASP. Radiosondes were also launched to correspond with this lidar data. The inflection point and standard deviation methods were used to calculate boundary layer height from the range corrected signal of the lidar data. Richardson number, temperature, and wind profiles were determined from the radiosondes. The radiosonde determined boundary layer height was used as the actual height for comparisons between the methods. The inflection point method was more accurate than the standard deviation method for calculation of the boundary layer height when compared to the rawinsonde data. The standard deviation method typically gave a higher boundary layer height than the inflection point method and rawinsonde determined boundary layer height. On days where high clouds were present, the data from the LiDAR was limited in altitude so that the variations in the signal from the clouds would not affect the calculated boundary layer height. There is more research to be done in determining the best way to limit the range corrected signal in the presence of clouds.