Atmospheric Lidar Observatory

Lidar is a radar-type technique that uses powerful lasers and large telescopes. The lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) remote sensing system sends out light pulses in order to gather data from distant locations. Lidar is often used for topographical mapping, but it has a variety of other applications in many different fields, including biology, transportation, and atmospheric science, the last of which is researched at Utah State University’s Atmospheric Lidar Observatory (ALO). Since 1993, the ALO has measured temperatures, densities, and waves in the mesosphere and looked for evidence of global warming. The ALO is currently being upgraded to make it the most powerful lidar in the world.