Theoretical Evaluation of Earth-to-Satellite Laser Long-Path Absorption Measurement of Atmospheric Trace Species in the Infrared Region

Measurement of atmospheric trace species based on the earth-to-satellite laser long-path absorption method using continuously tunable infrared laser was theoretically studied. Optimum wavelengths for the measurement were systematically investigated in the infrared region for all molecules included in the HITRAN92 data base. It was shown that H 2 O, CO 2 , O 3 , CH 4 , N 2 O and CO have strong absorption lines, and that the inversion method for retrieving vertical profiles can be applied. Also, it was shown that absorption lines of NO 2 , OCS, HCl, C 2 H 6 , HF, HNO 3 , NO, NH 3 , C 2 H 2 , H 2 CO, and HOCl have sufficient intensities for measuring column contents. Accuracy of column measurement of each molecule was estimated for a laser long-path absorption system using a geosynchronous satellite.