The Doppler Aerosol Wind (DAWN) Airborne, Wind-Profiling Coherent-Detection Lidar System: Overview and Preliminary Flight Results

The first airborne wind measurements of a pulsed, 2-μm solid-state, high-energy, wind-profiling lidar system for airborne measurements are presented. The laser pulse energy is the highest to date in an eye-safe airborne wind lidar system. This energy, the 10-Hz laser pulse rate, the 15-cm receiver diameter, and dual-balanced coherent detection together have the potential to provide much-improved lidar sensitivity to low aerosol backscatter levels compared to earlier airborne-pulsed coherent lidar wind systems. Problems with a laser-burned telescope secondary mirror prevented a full demonstration of the lidar’s capability, but the hardware, algorithms, and software were nevertheless all validated. A lidar description, relevant theory, and preliminary results of flight measurements are presented.