HR: 1340h
AN: A23A-0926    [Abstracts]
TI: Observations of Polar Stratospheric Clouds by the Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS)
AU: * Palm, S P
EM: spp@virl.gsfc.nasa.gov
AF: Science Systems and Applications Inc., 10210 Greenbelt Rd, Lanham, MD 20706 United States
AU: Fromm, M
EM: mike.fromm@nrl.navy.mil
AF: Naval Research Laboratory, 4555 Overlook Ave, Washington, DC 20375 United States
AU: Spinhirne, J D
EM: James.Spinhirne@nasa.gov
AF: Goddard Space Flight Center, 8800 Greenbelt Rd, Greenbelt, MD 20771
AB: The Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) was launched aboard the polar-orbiting Ice Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) in January 2003. GLAS utilizes 3 diode-pumped, ND:YAG lasers operating at the fundamental wavelength of 1064 nm for surface altimetry and clouds, and the frequency doubled 532 nm wavelength that provides high sensitivity (photon counting detectors) for atmospheric measurements of thin clouds and aerosols. Both atmospheric channels provide a high resolution (175 m horizontal and 76 m vertical) cross section of clouds and aerosols along the flight track. We present the first spaceborne lidar obervations of Polar Straospheric Clouds (PSCs). During late September and early October 2003, a large area of type I and II PSCs were detected over Antarctica in the GLAS lidar data. We discuss the vertical and horizontal structure of the clouds, backscatter characteristics, and their relationship to synoptic scale tropospheric weather systems. We also show near-simultaneous measurements from the SAGE II and POAM III limb sounding instruments and compare their PSC extinction retrievals to those of GLAS.
DE: 0399 General or miscellaneous
DE: 3349 Polar meteorology
DE: 3362 Stratosphere/troposphere interactions
SC: Atmospheric Sciences [A]
MN: Fall Meeting 2005