State-of-the-Art Lidar Observatory for Studies of the MiddleAtmosphere

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This is an Academic Research Infrastructure project to upgrade an existing lidar system at Utah State University (USU). It is a collaborative effort that includes investigators from USU, the University of Maryland, Clemson University, the University of Pittsburgh, and University College London. The lidar system provides measurements from which continuous profiles of atmospheric temperatures, densities and winds can be derived. The results will be used to study the transport of energy and momentum from the lower atmosphere to the mesosphere and lower thermosphere. The continuous observations over a long period of time will shed light on climatological questions relating to global change. The upgrade to the lidar system will increase the sensitivity of the instrument by about a factor of thirty. This is to be accomplished by constructing a telescope with a collecting area of 5 square meters. The project includes the construction of a building to house the lidar on the top of the Science and Engineering Building at USU. After the upgrade the lidar system will be one of the most powerful of its kind in the world. The data will be made available to atmospheric scientists and students.