Extending Micro-Pulse DIAL (MPD) Water Vapor Estimation Capability for Increased and Enhanced Weather Applications by Leveraging Advanced Signal Processing Techniques

对低层大气中水汽的准确测量是释放改进的云、降水和恶劣天气预报的关键之一。通过美国国家科学基金会的资助，研究人员开发了一个激光雷达网络，可以在无人值守的情况下运行，并提供研究质量的水蒸气测量。该项目将通过使用医学成像界已在使用的先进信号处理技术，提高这些激光雷达在空间和时间上提供测量的能力。除了改进预测的潜力之外，该项目还可能改变未来工具的构建方式，降低成本并扩大覆盖范围。这也是美国国家科学基金会授予早期科学家的第一个奖项。研究计划是将一种新的信号处理技术应用于微脉冲差分吸收激光雷达(MPD)网络，以提高该仪器反演水蒸气测量的能力。泊松总变分(PTV)技术被用作激光雷达应用的信号处理器框架，可以被概念化为一种基于信噪比系统地和最佳地调整观测的空间和时间分辨率的方法。PTV基于已在医学成像中使用的成熟的信号处理技术。该项目的短期目标是进一步验证初步的PTV技术，并在必要时通过处理几个具有一致的无线电探空仪水汽反演的MPD数据集来改进它。长期目标是改进该技术以提高计算效率，并将其集成到MPD试验台数据处理系统中。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The accurate measurement of water vapor in the lower atmosphere is one of the keys to unlocking improved forecasts of cloud, precipitation, and severe weather. Through NSF funding, researchers have developed a network of lidars that can run unattended and provide research-quality water vapor measurements. This project will enhance the capability of those lidars to provide measurements in space and time by using advanced signal processing techniques that are already in use in the medical imaging community. Beyond the potential to improve forecasting, the project could allow for a change in how future instruments are constructed, lowering the cost and allowing for more coverage. This also represents the first NSF award for an early-career scientist.The research plan is to apply a new signal processing technique to the micro-pulse differential absorption lidar (MPD) network to increase the capability of the instrument to retrieve water vapor measurements. The Poisson Total Variation (PTV) technique is used as a signal processor framework for lidar applications and can be conceptualized as an approach where the spatial and temporal resolutions of the observations are systematically and optimally adjusted based on the signal-to-noise ratio. The PTV is based on well-established signal processing techniques that have been used in medical imaging. The short-term objective of the project is to further validate the preliminary PTV techniques and improve it where necessary by processing several MPD datasets that have coincident radiosonde water vapor retrievals. The long-term objective is to refine the technique to be more computationally efficient and integrate it to the MPD testbed data processing system.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.