WIND-LIDAR ACTIVITIES AT DLR IN SUPPORT OF ADM-AEOLUS

Kurzfassung

The Atmospheric Dynamics Mission ADM-Aeolus of ESA will be the first lidar mission to sense the global wind field from space. An airborne prototype instrument – the ALADIN Airborne Demonstrator A2D – was developed to assess the performance of the Doppler lidar ALADIN on ADM-Aeolus and to optimize the retrieval algorithms with atmospheric signals. The A2D was the first airborne direct-detection Doppler lidar with its maiden flight on the DLR Falcon aircraft in 2005. Characterization campaigns on ground and three airborne campaigns together with a coherent-detection 2-μm wind lidar were performed for pre-launch validation of Aeolus. Furthermore, a unique experiment for resolving the Rayleigh-Brillouin spectral line shape in the atmosphere was accomplished in 2009 with the A2D from a mountain observatory at an altitude of 2650 m. Results of these experiments and the latest airborne campaign in the vicinity of Greenland and Iceland will be discussed next to selected recommendations stemming from the operational and technological experience. Additionally an overview of recent campaigns with the 2-μm wind lidar will be presented.