CHARM-F – The Airborne CH4 and CO2 IPDA Lidar: Status and Outlook

CHARM-F (CO2 and CH4 Atmospheric Remote Monitoring - Flugzeug) is DLR’s new airborne Integrated Path Differential Absorption (IPDA) lidar for simultaneous measurements of the column- weighted average dry-air mixing ratios of atmospheric carbon dioxide and methane. It is designed to be flown on board DLR’s new High-Altitude, LOng-range research aircraft, HALO. Besides water vapor, CO2 and methane are the most important greenhouse gases of the Earth’s atmosphere. However, there is still a lack of knowledge on sources, sinks and the underlying processes of these major GHGs. One purpose of CHARM-F is to experimentally investigate the feasibility of the IPDA lidar technique to provide a precise method for remote sensing of these two atmospheric trace gases. Furthermore, the system can serve as an airborne demonstrator for future spaceborne applications of this technical approach. In this context, the generation of real-world data can support the development of retrieval algorithms considerably. Not least, operated on HALO it is a powerful tool to investigate scientific topics on CO2 and CH4. All precursor experiments and the design phase of the instrument are completed. At the moment the system is being set up. First tests are planned for fall 2012