Experiments in the Atmospheres of Mars and Earth

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Funding is being requested in this application to support four graduate students. The research program consists of various projects with development of scientific instruments for the experimental investigation of the atmospheres on Earth and Mars. The common thread to the research is the methodology. The measurement technique is LIDAR, which is an acronym for Light Detection and Ranging (sometimes called Laser Radar). The method involves emitting pulses of laser light into the atmosphere and detecting the light that is scattered back by molecules, dust, and clouds. The current ongoing projects include the analysis of measurements with the LIDAR instrument on the NASA Phoenix Mars mission and measurements of air chemistry over the frozen Arctic Ocean. New projects moving forward will involve the development and application of LIDAR instruments for future Mars missions and for studies of atmospheric pollution on Earth.