Intercomparison of optical turbulence observations in a mountain-valley system

Frank D. Eaton; Wilbur P. Brown; Stephen D. Ford; Judith E. Miller; Sheldon S. Stokes; Victor M. Stone

doi:10.1117/12.438173

4 September 2001 Intercomparison of optical turbulence observations in a mountain-valley system

Frank D. Eaton, Wilbur P. Brown, Stephen D. Ford, Judith E. Miller, Sheldon S. Stokes, Victor M. Stone

Proceedings Volume 4376, Laser Weapons Technology II; (2001) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.438173
Event: Aerospace/Defense Sensing, Simulation, and Controls, 2001, Orlando, FL, United States

Abstract

The Airborne Laser Concepts Testbed is located on White Sands Missile Range, NM and is used to explore and develop new methods for tracking, pointing, and compensation of laser beams. All of these efforts require a knowledge of the optical turbulence along the propagation path. The site utilizes a 52.6 km propagation path over a desert basin between two mountain peaks (North Oscuro Peak (NOP) and Salinas Peak). Characterization of the optical turbulence at ABL ACT is challenging due to the long path length int he atmospheric boundary layer and the complex terrain of the site. A suite of instrumentation is being used to approach the problem; a sodar, fine wire probes, a pupil plane imager, a differential image motion monitor, and a scintillometer. In addition, a weather station senses ambient temperature, humidity, pressure, wind speed and direction, and solar radiation-received both horizontally and parallel to the mountain west-facing slope at NOP.

Citation Download Citation

Frank D. Eaton, Wilbur P. Brown, Stephen D. Ford, Judith E. Miller, Sheldon S. Stokes, and Victor M. Stone "Intercomparison of optical turbulence observations in a mountain-valley system", Proc. SPIE 4376, Laser Weapons Technology II, (4 September 2001); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.438173

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