Periodic Reporting for period 1 - EULIAA (EUROPEAN LIDAR ARRAY FOR ATMOSPHERIC CLIMATE MONITORING)
Período documentado: 2023-01-01 hasta 2024-06-30
The importance of understanding and monitoring atmospheric physics has increased drastically in recent years due to the anthropogenic impact on climate. One crucial research field is the understanding of wind fields and temperature distributions in the atmosphere to enhance climate models and improve short- to mid-term weather forecast. The lack of homogeneous wind field sampling leads to difficulties in constraining atmospheric models and limits the study of key processes in coupled climate systems. Currently, there is a major data-gap for continuous wind and temperature measurements in altitudes above 5 km. The European EO mission AEOLUS could measure winds up to 25 km and covered nearly the entire globe on a weekly repeat cycle. The data from that mission significantly improved the weather forecast, deepened the understanding of atmospheric key processes, and fueled the desire for ongoing high-resolution wind and temperature profile observations.
The goal of EULIAA is the development of a lidar array, that is capable of autonomously measuring the atmospheric key parameters, e.g. wind and temperature, from 5 km up to 50 km on a 24/7-basis over a long period of time and covering a large observation area. EULIAA’s lidar units are transportable, have a low power consumption and can operate autonomously which allows for measurements at remote regions. The lidar array demonstration is envisioned to consist of two single lidar units. This will yield novel data sets, processed for near real-time implementation into European databases like Copernicus, GEOSS or CEDA that will fill the current data-gaps and help to monitor the effects of climate change and to evaluate the climate protection measures.
To reach this goal, the following objectives are planned:
1. To demonstrate the superior daylight-capability of the individual low-cost and compact lidar system by measuring key parameters for monitoring climate change, e.g. wind, temperature, and aerosols with simultaneous Doppler-Rayleigh and -Mie during daylight at altitudes from 5 to 50 km. The data-gap within this currently inaccessible region of the atmosphere is closed using a novel Doppler-lidar array with multiple fields of view (FOV).
2. The combination of the two individual compact lidar systems with overlapping measurement regions as the first step to a lidar array that is able to cover a large area (> 100 km observation span) and provides five wind-components for each system.
3. To prove the operation in areas facing extreme physical environments by performing measurements at least on four different sites with Polar, Mountain, Mediterranean and near Equatorial environments and from sea- to mountain-level. The deployment to these sites demonstrates the easy deployment due to the compact design (~ 1m³), the low weight (~500 kg), the autonomous 24/7-operation and the low power consumption (~500 W).
4. To improve environmental observation not only by gathering data to fill the gap for continuous atmospheric key parameters > 10 km, but also by integrating them in near-real-time into European databases like Copernicus, making them available for the scientific community and the general public, while promoting the technology with the same measure and making it available to industry by the end of the project.
5. To ensure the sustainability of technological development by elaborating a roadmap to a European lidar array for atmospheric climate monitoring. EULIAA will assess the TRL status of all specific components, identify industrial partners for exploitation, and define the necessary next development steps.
The goal of EULIAA is the development of a lidar array, that is capable of autonomously measuring the atmospheric key parameters, e.g. wind and temperature, from 5 km up to 50 km on a 24/7-basis over a long period of time and covering a large observation area. EULIAA’s lidar units are transportable, have a low power consumption and can operate autonomously which allows for measurements at remote regions. The lidar array demonstration is envisioned to consist of two single lidar units. This will yield novel data sets, processed for near real-time implementation into European databases like Copernicus, GEOSS or CEDA that will fill the current data-gaps and help to monitor the effects of climate change and to evaluate the climate protection measures.
To reach this goal, the following objectives are planned:
1. To demonstrate the superior daylight-capability of the individual low-cost and compact lidar system by measuring key parameters for monitoring climate change, e.g. wind, temperature, and aerosols with simultaneous Doppler-Rayleigh and -Mie during daylight at altitudes from 5 to 50 km. The data-gap within this currently inaccessible region of the atmosphere is closed using a novel Doppler-lidar array with multiple fields of view (FOV).
2. The combination of the two individual compact lidar systems with overlapping measurement regions as the first step to a lidar array that is able to cover a large area (> 100 km observation span) and provides five wind-components for each system.
3. To prove the operation in areas facing extreme physical environments by performing measurements at least on four different sites with Polar, Mountain, Mediterranean and near Equatorial environments and from sea- to mountain-level. The deployment to these sites demonstrates the easy deployment due to the compact design (~ 1m³), the low weight (~500 kg), the autonomous 24/7-operation and the low power consumption (~500 W).
4. To improve environmental observation not only by gathering data to fill the gap for continuous atmospheric key parameters > 10 km, but also by integrating them in near-real-time into European databases like Copernicus, making them available for the scientific community and the general public, while promoting the technology with the same measure and making it available to industry by the end of the project.
5. To ensure the sustainability of technological development by elaborating a roadmap to a European lidar array for atmospheric climate monitoring. EULIAA will assess the TRL status of all specific components, identify industrial partners for exploitation, and define the necessary next development steps.
Within the first period of the project, the lidar system with its key-components were designed and developed and the manufacturing of two units started.
The measurement goals for the EULIAA lidar were derived based on typical atmospheric conditions, plausible specifications for the lidar system and a proven analytical model. Based on the measurement goals, the requirements for the lidar's subsystems were defined and solutions to fulfil the same were identified. These solutions were validated with simulations and experiments in the lab and with the VAHCOLI lidar operating in the IR as a reference. Based on these results, detailed designs of components, sub-systems and whole instrument for manufacturing were provided and test plans developed. The individual performance of the subsystems and the overall performance as the designated lidar system were proven in the tests and simulations. The lidar design was verified in a critical design review with detailed mechanical, electrical, thermal, software and optical design. First tests for the manufacturing and performance demonstrate the feasibility of the realization according to the project plan.
The manufacturing according to the design started and is ongoing. The prototype of the UV emitter is currently set up and the narrow filters are already manufactured and their performance under evaluation. The first already manufactured lidar instrument platform will be used to integrate all subsystems, verifying their proper interaction under final conditions early in the project. The lidar control is tested with the reference lidar system operating in the IR and will be adapted to the lidar system in the UV as soon as all subsystems are integrated.
The measurement goals for the EULIAA lidar were derived based on typical atmospheric conditions, plausible specifications for the lidar system and a proven analytical model. Based on the measurement goals, the requirements for the lidar's subsystems were defined and solutions to fulfil the same were identified. These solutions were validated with simulations and experiments in the lab and with the VAHCOLI lidar operating in the IR as a reference. Based on these results, detailed designs of components, sub-systems and whole instrument for manufacturing were provided and test plans developed. The individual performance of the subsystems and the overall performance as the designated lidar system were proven in the tests and simulations. The lidar design was verified in a critical design review with detailed mechanical, electrical, thermal, software and optical design. First tests for the manufacturing and performance demonstrate the feasibility of the realization according to the project plan.
The manufacturing according to the design started and is ongoing. The prototype of the UV emitter is currently set up and the narrow filters are already manufactured and their performance under evaluation. The first already manufactured lidar instrument platform will be used to integrate all subsystems, verifying their proper interaction under final conditions early in the project. The lidar control is tested with the reference lidar system operating in the IR and will be adapted to the lidar system in the UV as soon as all subsystems are integrated.
lidar instrument:
- reduction of complexity and size (50 %) for lower costs and higher mobility
- modular approach of all subsystems for faster integration and reduced time/effort for set-up and maintenance
- housekeeping of the instrument to withstand different challenging climatic environments
UV emitter:
- extremely high efficiency (200x higher than old technology) of a ultra-narrow bandwidth laser emitting at the iron resonance line in the UV
- novel concept for stabilizing and scanning the wavelength of the UV emitter, using a novel seeder laser in the IR
- long-time stable and outgassing-free design for the UV emitter
narrow filters:
- narrow filter combination that allow for daylight measurements with low pulse energies
- stabilization of the filter in the UV without the need of a reference laser on the specific wavelength in the UV by using bichromatic design
- robust mounting with improved temperature control for higher stabilization
multi-FOV telescopes:
- novel design with lowered complexity and price but improved performance
- active and passive approaches to prevent seeing effects, improving signal strength drastically (~100x)
lidar control:
- active control of lidar emitter and receiver with wavelength scanning of emitter and stabilization of filters
- online measurement of spectral properties of emitted and received signal and calculation of atmospheric parameters
- safety measures to ensure safe autonomous operation of lidar system
- reduction of complexity and size (50 %) for lower costs and higher mobility
- modular approach of all subsystems for faster integration and reduced time/effort for set-up and maintenance
- housekeeping of the instrument to withstand different challenging climatic environments
UV emitter:
- extremely high efficiency (200x higher than old technology) of a ultra-narrow bandwidth laser emitting at the iron resonance line in the UV
- novel concept for stabilizing and scanning the wavelength of the UV emitter, using a novel seeder laser in the IR
- long-time stable and outgassing-free design for the UV emitter
narrow filters:
- narrow filter combination that allow for daylight measurements with low pulse energies
- stabilization of the filter in the UV without the need of a reference laser on the specific wavelength in the UV by using bichromatic design
- robust mounting with improved temperature control for higher stabilization
multi-FOV telescopes:
- novel design with lowered complexity and price but improved performance
- active and passive approaches to prevent seeing effects, improving signal strength drastically (~100x)
lidar control:
- active control of lidar emitter and receiver with wavelength scanning of emitter and stabilization of filters
- online measurement of spectral properties of emitted and received signal and calculation of atmospheric parameters
- safety measures to ensure safe autonomous operation of lidar system