SBIR Phase I: Balloon-Based Instrument for Measurements of Atmospheric Water Vapor and Methane

这个小企业创新研究第一阶段项目将研究开发一种基于气球的仪器的可行性，该仪器可以高精度地测量水蒸气和甲烷。水蒸气和甲烷在大气的化学、动力学和辐射收支中起着至关重要的作用，但它们在对流层顶附近和平流层中的浓度特征却很差。商用湿度计在这些地区是不可靠的，而且没有现有的仪器可以测量标准气象气球上的甲烷。该项目的关键创新是用于测量甲烷的低功率垂直腔面发射激光器（VCSEL），新开发的紧凑光学电池以最大程度地减少空间和重量要求，奇异值分解算法以提高长期精度，以及在1854 nm处增加另一个VCSEL以探测水蒸气。开发一种用于标准气象气球的综合水汽和甲烷仪器，将通过为研究人员提供目前无法完成的有价值的测量数据，大大促进对全球气候变化的理解。对对流层上层和平流层中这些气体进行更精确的测量，将使科学家能够更准确地预测臭氧层的变化和气候变化。对流层上层更精确的水汽水平将产生更准确的预报。

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project will examine the feasibility of developing a balloon-based instrument that can measure water vapor and methane at high precision and accuracy. Water vapor and methane play critical roles in the chemistry, dynamics, and radiative budget of the atmosphere, but their concentrations are quite poorly characterized near the tropopause and in the stratosphere. Commercial hygrometers are unreliable in these regions, and no existing instrumentation can measure methane onboard standard weather balloons. Key innovations for this project are a low power vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL) to measure methane, newly developed compact optical cells to minimize space and weight requirements, singular valued decomposition algorithms to increase long-term precision, and the addition of another VCSEL at 1854 nm to probe water vapor. Development of a combined water vapor and methane instrument for standard weather balloons will significantly advance the understanding of global climate change by providing researchers with valuable measurements that cannot be accomplished currently. More accurate measurements of these gases in the upper troposphere and stratosphere will enable scientists to more accurately predict changes to the ozone layer and climate change. More accurate levels of water vapor in the upper troposphere will yield more accurate forecasts.