Retrieving Cloud Optical Depth for Low Level Clouds using Mini Micro Pulsed LiDAR

The optical depth of a cloud is the vertical optical thickness between the top and bottom of a cloud. Low level clouds have a large liquid water path and are directly involved with anthropogenic aerosols and the atmospheric boundary layers. Clouds have a high impact on absorbed short wave and emitted long wave radiation, and the amount of particles and molecules within the clouds affect the rate at which this occurs. We expect through this study to accurately acquire the Cloud Optical Depth of thin clouds which could contribute 10 W/m2 to the cloud radiation effect for a COD of 0.1. We perform our measurements with a Mini Micro Pulse LiDAR system and radiosondes launched from Brookhaven National Lab.