ICESat-2 Atmospheric Data and Applications to the Polar Region

Carrying the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimetry System (ATLAS), ICESat-2 is scheduled for launch in late 2017. Though the primary science objective of the 3 year mission is the high resolution altimetry mapping of the Earth’s major ice sheets and sea ice, ATLAS will also acquire global atmospheric backscatter profiles from the 3 strong 532 nm laser beams (ATLAS utilizes 6 beams in total). The main intent of the atmospheric data is to characterize the atmosphere to aid in the interpretation and filtering of altimetry data, as clouds, fog and blowing snow can adversely affect the ranging accuracy due to signal attenuation and multiple scattering. But in addition to their use as an aid to altimetry, the ATLAS atmospheric data have potential scientific uses in their own right such as global and especially polar cloud studies, aerosol sources and transport, and blowing snow over the polar regions. This presentation will discuss the characteristics of the ATLAS atmospheric data, the planned atmospheric data products and their potential for contributing to atmospheric science with a focus on the polar region.