Abstract

The need for a remote sensing system based in space to measure atmospheric pressure at the Earth’s surface provided the stimulus for the concept of monitoring laser energy attenuation in the wing of a molecular resonant absorption line,¹ a quantity dependent on ambient pressure. Experimental verification of the technique, using a ground-based, narrow band (less than 0.001 cm^-1) CW tunable dye laser system monitoring lines in the oxygen “A” band, has recently been presented.² However, a pulsed system would normally be used in an operational system because of power requirements, with resulting bandwidth and frequency stability questions that do not arise in a CW system. This paper develops the theory to show the magnitude of these effects and demonstrates its application to oxygen lines selected as optimal for a horizontal path system.

© 1983 Optical Society of America