An analysis of the performance of the UFAM pulsed Doppler lidar for observing the boundary layer

Abstract

The performance of the 1.5-μm pulsed Doppler lidar, operated by the U.K. Universities Facility for Atmospheric Measurement (UFAM) over a 51-day continuous and unattended field deployment in southern England, is described and analyzed with a view to demonstrating the capabilities of the system for remote measurements of aerosols and velocities in the boundary layer. A statistical assessment of the vertical pointing mode in terms of the availability and errors in the data versus range is presented. Examples of lidar data are compared to theoretical predictions, radiosondes, the UFAM radar wind profiler, and an ultrasonic anemometer. © 2009 American Meteorological Society.