Micro-Pulse Lidar Network (MPLNET): 10 Years of Trying to Imitate AERONET

Principal Investigator:Judd Welton, NASA GSFC Code 613.1

Instrumentation & Network Management:Sebastian Stewart, SSAI GSFC Code 613.1

Tim Berkoff, UMBC GSFC Code 613.1

Data Processing & Analysis:Larry Belcher, UMBC GSFC Code 613.1James Campbell, Naval Research Lab

Administrative Support:Sonia Cyrus, SSAI GSFC Code 613.1

GLAS Validation Activities:Jim Spinhirne, formerly NASA GSFC Code 613.1

Judd Welton, Tim Berkoff

CALIPSO Validation Activities:Judd Welton, Tim Berkoff, James Campbell

AERONET & Synergy Tool Partnership:Brent Holben, NASA GSFC Code 614.4Dave Giles, NASA GSFC Code 614.4

NASA SMARTLABS Field Deployments:Si-Chee Tsay, NASA GSFC Code 613.2

Jack Ji, UMCP GSFC Code 613.2Carlo Wang, UMCP GSFC Code 613.2

Site Operations & Science Investigations…. many network partners around the world

MPLNET is funded by the NASA Radiation SciencesProgram and the Earth Observing System

MPLNET information and results shown here are theresult of efforts by all of our network partners!

Micro-Pulse Lidar Network (MPLNET)

http://mplnet.gsfc.nasa.gov

TropopauseCirrus

Transported Aerosol(Asian Dust, Pollution)

Boundary Layer(local aerosol)

Example of MPLNET Level 1 Data: Atmospheric StructureA

ltitu

de (k

m)

Time UTC

MPLNET Sites: 2000 - currentSouth Pole MPLNET Site:1999-current

MPLNET: 5.3 Trillion Laser Shots and counting …..

• A federated network of micro pulse lidar sites around the world, coordinated and lead from Goddard Space Flight Center

• Co-location with related networks, including NASA AERONET• Local, regional, and global scale contributions to atmospheric research• Satellite validation• Aerosol climate and air quality model validation• Impact of aerosol & cloud heights on direct and indirect climate effects• Support for wide variety of field campaigns

What’s New?

• Version 2 products released 2008

• Dongsha Island temporary site Spring 2010

• Hanoi, Vietnam planned site by early 2011

• Several proposed sites in SE Asia in support of 7-SEAS/SEAC4RS

• Other planned sites: Spain, Miami, NYC, N. Carolina, China

• Ongoing interactions with both Aerocom and ICAP communities (climate and operational air quality modeling)

Micro Pulse Lidar(GSFC Patent)

The Micro Pulse Lidar Network (MPLNET): Overview

18 Active Sites

Micro Pulse Lidar Systems (MPL)• GSFC Patent• First commercial, autonomous, eye-safe aerosol & cloud lidar (100s sold worldwide) • green wavelength (523, 527, or 532 nm)• low energy, fast pulse rate• small FOV, no multiple scattering Co-located sunphotometers are essential

Models 1 - 3: SESI Model 4: Sigma Space Corp

The MPL and MPLNET recently won a Technology Transfer award from the Federal Laboratory Consortium

May 2, 2001 May 3, 2001

00:00 12:00 00:00 12:00 00:00Morning AfternoonNighttime Nighttime Morning Afternoon

Time UTC

Altit

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Tropospheric Aerosol from Asia

Well Mixed PBL Well Mixed PBLStratified PBL Stratified PBL

Asian aerosol entrainedwithin boundary layer

PBL Growth PBL Decay

Level 1 MPLNET Signals from NASA Goddard

Micro-Pulse Lidar Network (MPLNET)MPLNET Data Products

MPLNET Data Products:

Level 1 NRB Signals, Diagnostics(near real time, no quality screening)

Level 1.5 Level 1.5b: Aerosol, Cloud, PBL Heights and Vertical Feature MaskLevel 1.5a: Aerosol Backscatter, Extinction, Optical Depth Profiles and Lidar Ratio(near real time, no quality screening)

Level 2 Operational Products Under Development (beta data available upon request)(not real time, quality assured)

All data are publicly available in netcdf format. Errors included for all data products.

Data policy same as AERONET. We are a federated network, individual site providers deserve credit.

near real time: 1 hour or 1 day

The Micro Pulse Lidar Network (MPLNET): Products

The Micro Pulse Lidar Network (MPLNET): Products

AERONET column AOD nearly doublesMPLNET shows this is due to increase in PBL aerosol loading

GSFC MPLNET Site: 20 min ave

UMBC Mini Site: 20 min ave

Improve simple lidar (MPL): reduce calibration and operational headaches

MPLNET: Working towards supporting Leosphere’s EZ Lidar in the network

MPL (527 nm)

EZL (355 nm)

We are working to accommodate Sigma Space Corp. depolarization MPL, and Leosphere’s EZ Lidar instruments into MPLNET.

NASA benefit: more ground-based lidar sites available for mission support.

Partner benefit: MPLNET supported lidar sites are included in the AERONET Synergy Tool, providing increased visibility and co-located data products/analysis (AERONET, back-trajectories, satellite products, models)

Quality assurance of level 1 EZ lidar data to be provided by Leosphere, MPLNET cannot do this.

Primary goal: include non-MPLNET sites in the AERONET synergy tool

* Different data resolutions. MPL (1 min, 75 m), EZL (1 min, 15 m)

GAW Aerosol Lidar Observation Network (GALION)

2008 WMO Report:

ftp://ftp.wmo.int/Documents/PublicWeb/arep/gaw/gaw178-galion-27-Oct.pdf

First WMO Experts Meeting on the implementation ofthe GAW Aerosol Lidar Observation Network: GALIONHeld in March 2007, Hamburg Germany

The Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) aerosol program (GAW, 2007) strives "to determine the spatio-temporal distribution of aerosol properties related to climate forcing and air quality up to multidecadal time scales".

GALION goal: provide the vertical component of aerosol distributions through advanced laser remote sensing in a network of ground-based stations.

Ray Hoff (UMBC) and Gelsomina Pappalardo (CNR-IMAA) are the GALION Leads

http://alg.umbc.edu/galion/

Represented Networks:Regional/Continental (Dense): EARLINET (EUROPE)

AD-NET (E ASIA)

CIS-LINET (CIS)

CLN (NE United States)

CORALNET (Canada)

ALINE (Central & South America, Caribbean)

Global (Sparse): MPLNET NDACC

* Independent Sites

Conceptually GALION fits GEOSS since it is a Network of Networks and GAW is GEOSS

Implementation: Steering Group (GAW - network heads) Technical Working Groups

Technology & Methodology QA/QC Data Dissemination & Outreach Model & Satellite Validation, Data

Assimilation Capacity Building

Development into other regions Integration with

Sunphotometer/Satellite Meas/Modeling

Initial observation schedule based on EARLINET

Minimum 1 obs at sunset on Mon, Thu

If possible, 1 obs midday on Mon

Site Setup Costs: MPLNET ~ $150k, AERONET ~$40k: ~$200k total

Mean MPLNET Funding since 2006: ~$880k/year total (less than half AERONET)

MPLNET Staff Manpower: ~4 FTE (AERONET ~10 FTE)

Thoughts on advanced operational profiling network:

Characterize instrument performance and quantify level 0 to level 1 data uncertainty

Develop robust QC procedures to provide level 2 data (retrievals), minimize model dependency

Long term instrument maintenance and QC tracking are major headache and time sinkChanges in subcomponents (laser) with time, can create QC nightmare

Testbed approach may not capture real world network issues & costsBest instruments from company, lots of attention & care providedReal network: wide variety of instrument performance

MPLNET + AERONET has demonstrated long term operational capability to provide continuous aerosol & cloud, satellite cal/val, Air Quality, and PBL height data for a per site cost of ~$200k

Final Thoughts: Costs and MPLNET lessons learned

Backup Slides

Peer Review Publications since 2000:

12 Lead Author Publications (MPLNET staff lead author)

34 Co-Author Publications

7 Other publications (using MPLNET data)

2 Dissertations

In review, preparation:

4 Papers in review

4 Papers in preparation

1 Dissertation starting

MPLNET Status: Publications and Applications

Publication Subject Areas:

31 aerosols15 clouds7 cal/val5 network & data processing3 modeling1 snow

Applications:

• NRT PBL Heights supplied to NCEP

• Aerosol Model Evaluation• GEOS-5 and NRL/NAAPS

would like to start effort

Aerosol Properties:

1st Step: Retrievals at coincident AERONET AOD observations (daytime only)Using constrained Fernald solution(Welton et al. 2000)

The Micro Pulse Lidar Network (MPLNET): Products

The Micro Pulse Lidar Network (MPLNET): Products

MPLNET Level 2 Flow Chart

TelescopeTemperature

Cloud Free Lidar RatioUncertainty

Calibration ZoneSignal Uncertainty

Daily Calibration Variation

Standard QA Scheme ± 2° C > 80 % < 30 % < 20 % none

QA-C Scheme ± 2° C > 80 % < 30 % < 20 % < 5 %

QA-T Scheme ± 1° C > 80 % < 30 % < 20 % none

MPLNET Level 2 Results: GSFC 2009