A simulation approach for airborne DIAL systems

Kurzfassung

Trace gases are components of the Earth’s atmosphere influencing weather and climate significantly. They play an important role in atmosphere’s chemistry. Ground-based and airborne Differential-Absorption-Lidar-Systems (DIAL) designed for atmospheric investigations are operated since 20 years. Based on the long-term experience in development and operation, the DLR Lidar group initiated a new airborne water vapour Lidar experiment which will perform its first test flight in 2006. Software simulation is one of the major tools for the development of such complex opto-electronic systems. It allows the optimization of system parameters and observation conditions, the development and test of data processing software and the estimation of the capabilities of the sensor system in terms of product quality. The paper describes the physical basics and the DLR DIAL concept. The simulations’ end results are presented.