Real Time Analysis and Display of Scanning Lidar Scattering Data

We describe software for an IBM compatible personal computer (PC) that we have developed and used to collect and analyze backscatter data from a multi-wavelength Mie-Rayleigh scanning lidar system. Both one and two-dimensional distributions of optical scattering coefficients are calculated from the lidar return signals and displayed in real time. Although we are using the software for analyzing marine aerosols, the modular nature of the software and data acquisition drivers make it straightforward to adapt the software to different systems, such as differential absorption lidar (DIAL) and oceanic lidars. We show examples of both horizontal and vertical Mie-Rayleigh lidar scans collected at the Makai Pier and Bellows Beach on the northeast side of the island of Oahu.