Abstract
In response to a recognized need for an inexpensive, low power, portable lidar for meteorological applications in remote areas, a system has been designed and constructed. The lidar, termed MELS (Mini-Environmental Lidar System), operates on 20 watts of power from a generator or battery, and can be easily deployed by two people on foot. After a series of calibration runs the MELS was demonstrated in two field experiments in Colorado valleys. One experiment was concerned with the measurement of natural aerosols and another with smoke released from a point source. Meteorological interpretation of the data shows consistency with expectations; the data provide a valuable adjunct to the conventional observations for deducing boundary layer dynamics.
