The NASA Cloud Physics Lidar (CPL) is an airborne lidar that has flown on the high-altitude ER-2 aircraft since 2000. The CPL has participated in several major field campaigns, including SAFARI-2000 and CRYSTAL-FACE. Data from the CPL is being used for satellite validation (MODIS, AIRS, GLAS, NAST), for satellite simulations (CALIPSO, CloudSat), and for applied science investigations, Science applications of CPL data include analysis of cirrus anvil evolution, modeling of thunderstorm development, improving GOES cloud top analyses, development and validation of cloud-aerosol retrieval algorithms, and simulating future satellite instruments. In this presentation we will show an overview of the CPL instrument and measurement capability followed by examples of CPL data for each of the aforementioned applications. Specific emphasis will be placed on demonstrating application of CPL data to non-lidar science applications, thereby underscoring the utility of lidar measurements to the general atmospheric science community.