Lidar studies of aerosols and non-Kolmogorov turbulence in the Mediterranean troposphere

The estimation of the performance of electro-optical systems depends on the accuracy of the atmospheric models being used in the propagation prediction codes. In the present work we demonstrate that in a real atmosphere (above the surface layer) the turbulent field of passive scalar fluctuations can differ from Kolmogorov's model. From the spectrum of the intensity fluctuations of LIDAR signals scattered by aerosol concentration inhomogeneities, the behavior of atmospheric turbulence spectrum (power law exponent γ) is estimated. As follows from the experimental data the power law exponent of the turbulent spectra can be different from the case of purely Kolmogorov (γ=5/3). Also, results of lidar measurements of aerosol size distribution, volume, and number concentration at different heights in the Mediterranean region (Be'er-Sheva, Israel) and comparison with models (AFGL, MODTRAN) are presented. Implications can be important for optical communication, imaging through the atmosphere, and adaptive optics.

[1]  W. Wiscombe.  Improved Mie scattering algorithms. , 1980, Applied optics.

[2]  D. Tanré,et al.  Retrieval of aerosol optical thickness and size distribution over ocean from the MODIS airborne simulator during TARFOX , 1999 .

[3]  F. Ferri,et al.  Modified version of the Chahine algorithm to invert spectral extinction data for particle sizing. , 1995, Applied optics.

[4]  Mikhail S. Belen'kii,et al.  Experimental study of the effect of non-Kolmogorov stratospheric turbulence on star image motion , 1997, Optics & Photonics.

[5]  Ephim Golbraikh,et al.  Behavior of structure function of refraction coefficients in different turbulent fields. , 2004, Applied optics.

[6]  Michael C. Roggemann,et al.  Optical propagation in non-Kolmogorov atmospheric turbulence , 1995, Defense, Security, and Sensing.

[7]  T. Elperin,et al.  Isotropic and anisotropic spectra of passive scalar fluctuations in turbulent fluid flow. , 1996, Physical review. E, Statistical physics, plasmas, fluids, and related interdisciplinary topics.

[8]  Gérard Mégie,et al.  Laser Remote Sensing: Fundamentals and Applications , 1985 .

[9]  Norman S. Kopeika,et al.  Aerosol size distribution variance at different elevations , 2005, SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing.

[10]  F. G. Fernald.  Analysis of atmospheric lidar observations: some comments. , 1984, Applied optics.

[11]  Y. Sasano,et al.  Light scattering characteristics of various aerosol types derived from multiple wavelength lidar observations. , 1989, Applied optics.

[12]  Alan R. Kerstein,et al.  Mixing of strongly diffusive passive scalars like temperature by turbulence , 1988, Journal of Fluid Mechanics.

[13]  F. Harris.  On the use of windows for harmonic analysis with the discrete Fourier transform , 1978, Proceedings of the IEEE.

[14]  E. Golbraikh,et al.  Different spectra formation in the presence of helical transfer , 2002 .

[15]  H. Quenzel,et al.  Information content of multispectral lidar measurements with respect to the aerosol size distribution. , 1985, Applied optics.

[16]  Y. Sasano,et al.  Numerical simulation of the retrieval of aerosol size distribution from multiwavelength laser radar measurements. , 1989, Applied optics.

[17]  A. Townsend,et al.  Small-scale variation of convected quantities like temperature in turbulent fluid Part 2. The case of large conductivity , 1959, Journal of Fluid Mechanics.

[18]  M S Belen'kii,et al.  Effect of the stratosphere on star image motion. , 1995, Optics letters.

[19]  J. Gonglewski,et al.  Atmospheric structure function measurements with a Shack-Hartmann wave-front sensor. , 1992, Optics letters.

[20]  E. Golbraikh,et al.  On the universality of large-scale turbulence , 2004 .

[21]  Changhui Rao,et al.  Spatial and temporal characterization of phase fluctuations in non-Kolmogorov atmospheric turbulence , 2000 .

[22]  Carl H. Gibson,et al.  The universal equilibrium spectra of turbulent velocity and scalar fields , 1963, Journal of Fluid Mechanics.

[23]  N. Kopeika,et al.  Changes in modulation transfer function and optical resolution in helical turbulent media. , 2002, Journal of the Optical Society of America. A, Optics, image science, and vision.