Cloud temperature measurement using rotational Raman lidar

- Our method can effectively remove influence of cloud strong elastic scattering on the rotational Raman detection channels.
- Our method can improve the retrieval accuracy of cloud temperature.
- The feasibility of this method is demonstrated through HU lidar measurement.

Insufficient suppression of the elastic-scattering signal in the rotational Raman (RR) detection channels can result in a retrieval error particularly when the temperature of a thick cloud is measured using an RR lidar. To solve this problem, a technique is presented to obtain relative transmission factors for the two RR channels' thereby correcting for the influence of residual elastic-signal on the temperature retrieval. The feasibility of this technique is demonstrated by applying the algorithm to the Hampton University (HU) lidar measurements. Intercomparisons of these temperature retrievals from both water-phase and cirrus clouds show good agreement with radiosonde measurements.