Abstract
Vertical distributions of aerosol optical properties derived from lidar measurements are essential information for evaluating climate change. The recent development of lidar, communication, and computer technologies has enabled us to conduct ground-based network observations and satellite borne, ship borne, and airborne measurements with multichannel lidar. These lidar observations and related data analyses have provided detailed aerosol information. This paper reports the current status of aerosol observations conducted with lidars by the National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES) and those performed around the world. Several up-to-date developed algorithms that estimate aerosol optical and microphysical properties using multichannel lidar data are also reported. NIES future strategies for lidar observation and aerosol retrieval algorithms are also presented based on the current status.
