Wind measurements from an orbital platform using a lidar system with incoherent detection: an analysis.

A lidar system from an orbital platform is used to simulate the measurement of winds in the atmosphere using different scattering regimes. A high-resolution Fabry-Perot interferometer with a multiple-ring anode detector is used in the simulations. The main factors that limit the accuracy and spatial resolution of the measurement, such as laser bandwidth, detector resolution, and pointing accuracy, have been considered. It is shown that winds in the troposphere and stratosphere can be measured with an accuracy of 2 m/sec using the backscattered signal from aerosols and from cloud tops. In the mesosphere a wind accuracy of 5 m/sec can be achieved using the backscattered signal from the resonance fluorescence of sodium.