Book Description

The NOAA Air Resources Laboratories have conducted a stratospheric measurement project since 1973 at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii (19.5° N, 155.6° W). Lidar soundings of stratospheric aerosols are taken biweekly, using a ruby laser with a wavelength of 694.3 nm. This report covers 1976. Nine profiles of the non-Rayleigh backscatter coefficient are plotted and tabulated throughout the lower stratosphere from 16 to 25 km. These aerosols, which are of climatic importance, displayed a decreasing trend during 1976 as the stratosphere recovered from the October 1974 eruption of Fuego volcano in Guatemala (14.5° N, 91° W).