We present the results of a detailed lidar study on urban aerosols performed in summer 1996 in Lyon. Mie calculations have been performed to determine the optical backscattering and extinction coefficients of the real size distribution obtained by sampling, and then used for lidar measurements. The solid particles have been sampled using cut-off filters. Size distribution and composition, determined by scanning electronic microcopy (SEM) and x-ray microanalysis, reveal two main modes at 0.1 and 0.9 micrometer, the composition of which is soot for the first one and 60% soot - 40% silica for the second. The combined SEM and lidar techniques allowed to obtain the first quantitative lidar profiles of urban aerosols. Potential and limitations of the method are critically discussed.

Date Published: 26 May 1997
PDF: 7 pages
Proc. SPIE 3104, Lidar Atmospheric Monitoring, (26 May 1997);

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 3104:
Lidar Atmospheric Monitoring
Jean-Pierre Wolf, Editor(s)