Author

Jaya Khanna

Date of Award

2011

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Program

Physics

Supervisor

Dr. Robert J. Sica

Second Advisor

Dr. Richard Holt

Third Advisor

Dr. Wayne K. Hocking

Abstract

The conventional method of lidar data processing to retrieve atmospheric temperature profiles has some limitations which necessitate the abandonment of the temperatures re­trieved at the uppermost limits of the observational range. The application of mathematical inversion, as a tool to remedy this problem, was investigated in this project. A simple grid search technique was used to develop an alternative way of retrieving atmospheric temper­ature profiles from lidar data. Data obtained from the Purple Crow lidar (PCL) (42.87° N, 81.38° W, 225 m) facility at the University of Western Ontario was used to perform the pre­liminary tests on this technique. PCL data for 12 nights of observation were processed by the new technique. Initial results show that data at the uppermost altitude limits can be reliably retrieved with this method. A numerical scheme to analyze errors in the retrieved tempera­tures was developed. The uncertainties in retrieved temperatures computed using this method are comparable to the corresponding uncertainties in the conventional technique.

Share

COinS
 
 

To view the content in your browser, please download Adobe Reader or, alternately,
you may Download the file to your hard drive.

NOTE: The latest versions of Adobe Reader do not support viewing PDF files within Firefox on Mac OS and if you are using a modern (Intel) Mac, there is no official plugin for viewing PDF files within the browser window.