Aeolus First Results

The Aeolus satellite was launched on 22 August 2018 and is part of the European Space Agency (ESA) core Earth-Explorer wind profiling mission. Soon after the Aeolus launch the first credible wind profile observations became available and ECMWF started data assimilation experiments showing benefits of Aeolus winds in Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP), particularly in the southern hemisphere. The satellite embarks the Atmospheric Laser Doppler Instrument (ALADIN). ALADIN is the first space-borne Doppler Wind Lidar (DWL) and provides essential information on atmospheric dynamics and circulation in clear air. Such information will benefit NWP, climate research and the further validation of satellite wind observations. Aeolus set out to demonstrate the beneficial use of DWL observations in NWP. The Aeolus Rayleigh channel is unique in that it provides wind information in clear air from molecular returns and it provides generally winds for about 80% of the atmospheric samples, depending on vertical sampling settings and the occurrence of clouds. The Line-Of-Sight (LOS) wind profiles, which are being assimilated into numerical weather prediction models and used to monitor atmospheric dynamics and circulation, are the primary Aeolus products. In addition, cloud and aerosol optical properties are being produced as secondary product with a horizontal resolution down to 3 km, the basic Aeolus horizontal integration length. At the conference we will present the latest results of the ESA Aeolus Data Innovation Science Cluster (DISC) on the ongoing end-to-end cal/val and on Aeolus product research and development. Both optical and wind products will be addressed and their validation to prepare data assimilation experiments in NWP. We will conclude with lessons learned relevant for an operational follow-on mission