The GSFC Lidar Observation and Validation Experiment (GLOVE) is a NASA campaign focused on validating ICESat-2 and EarthCARE data products and testing the new Roscoe lidar receiver alignment. GLOVE consisted of one deployment based out of Edwards Air Force Base in California in February 2025. NASA ER-2 aircraft was equipped with the Cloud Physics Lidar (CPL), enhanced MODIS Airborne Simulator (eMAS), Cloud Radar System (CRS), and Roscoe, a more compact version of CPL. GLOVE collected radar and lidar measurements of cloud and aerosol properties to validate satellite observations.
2025-02-03 — 2025-02-20
Southern California, Western United States, Pacific Ocean
The Cloud Physics Lidar (CPL) is an airborne lidar system designed specifically to provide multi-wavelength measurements of cirrus clouds, sub-visual cirrus clouds, and aerosols. It measures lidar backscatter across three wavelengths: 355 nm, 532 nm, and 1064 nm. These measurements can be used to derive cloud optical depth, particle size distribution, extinction profiles, aerosol layers, and other properties. CPL has a vertical resolution of 30 m and a typical horizontal resolution of 200 m.
The Enhanced MODIS Airborne Simulator (eMAS) is an airborne cross-track scanning spectrometer operated by the Airborne Sensor Facility (ASF) at NASA Ames Research Center. eMAS collects high-resolution imagery of cloud and surface features which can be used to help develop and test algorithms for MODIS satellite observations. It operates across 38 spectral channels at 0.445-14.1 µm wavelengths and has a scan rate of 6.25 Hz. eMAS has a spatial resolution of 50 m and a swath width of 37.25 km at an altitude of 20 km.
The Cloud Radar System (CRS) is an airborne W-band polarimetric Doppler radar. CRS provides radar observations of clouds and precipitation from the surface up to the lower stratosphere. It has an operating frequency of 94 GHz and has a 150m range resolution. CRS has a typical vertical resolution of 100m and a gate spacing of 37.5m.
Roscoe is an airborne aerosol and cloud lidar system. It is a more compact version of the Cloud Physics Lidar (CPL) developed by Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). It was designed to observe both upwards and downwards from the aircraft to collect profile measurements of attenuated backscatter and aerosol/cloud optical properties. Roscoe operates at 355 nm and 1064 nm wavelengths and has a resolution of 200 m. It has a temporal resolution of 1 second.
