Abstract

The analysis of satellite data reveals an additional cloud cover due to contrails of 0.4% over mid-Europe (Schumann and Wendling, 1990) and up to 2% over the eastern part of the Atlantic Ocean ( Bakan et.al., 1994). The contrails consist of ice crystals and form from the additional water vapour emitted by high flying aircrafts. Their persistence (up to some hours) depends on the ambient temperature and humidity (Appelman, 1953, Boin and Levkov, 1994). To evaluate the impact of contrails on the earth's radiation budget, their extension and optical parameters must be known. This paper describes a scanning lidar system dedicated to the measurement of contrails, and an analysis of the temporal and spatial evolution of seven contrails.

© 1995 Optical Society of America