For Release: July 1, 1998
Catherine E.
Watson
Langley Research Center
(757) 864-6122
Cynthia O'Carroll
Goddard Space Flight Center
(301) 286-6943
RELEASE NO. 98-032
NOTE TO EDITORS/NEWS DIRECTORS
Laser Scientists Gather to Discuss New Remote Sensing
Techniques
More than 350 scientists and engineers from across the world will
meet next week to review the latest developments in the art and
science of laser remote sensing. The 19th International Laser Radar
Conference will be held July 6-10 at the U.S. Naval Academy in
Annapolis, Md. Attendees will review progress towards understanding
current issues such as global warming, ozone depletion, severe
weather formation, and atmospheric pollution.
The lidar (LIght Detection and Ranging) technique, which is
similar to radar but uses laser light, has had an explosive growth
during the last two decades. Lidar system operations are routinely
conducted from the ground, air, and ships. A space-borne lidar
system was also successfully demonstrated with the flight of the
Lidar In-space Technology Experiment aboard the space shuttle
Discovery in 1994.
The conference is held biennially to discuss a broad spectrum of
lidar technologies and their applications. These applications
include the measurement of winds, water vapor, ozone, small
particles, and clouds in the atmosphere. In addition, lidars are
being used to study the Earth's topography and polar ice
sheets.
New lidar techniques and technologies, recent lidar
observations, and their applications will be featured during the
conference. The highlight of the conference will be a review of
past, present and future space lidar missions including the Mars
Orbiter Laser Altimeter instrument aboard the Mars Global Surveyor
and the Space Readiness Coherent Lidar Experiment for the
measurement of winds from space.
The conference is hosted jointly by NASA Langley Research
Center, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, and the U.S. Naval
Academy. The conference is co-sponsored by a number of national
agencies and scientific organizations including, NASA, NOAA, the
U.S. Naval Academy, the Naval Research Laboratory, the Optical
Society of America, the American Meteorological Society, the
University of Maryland-Baltimore and Hampton University. The lidar
conference is held under the auspices of the International
Committee on Laser Atmospheric Studies of the International
Radiation Commission and the Committee on Laser Atmospheric
Studies.
- end -
text-only version of this release |
