Doppler Lidar Measurements of Winds in a Narrow Mountain Valley

Abstract

During September and October of 1984, the Wave Propagation Laboratory of NOAA used its pulsed infrared Doppler lidar in support of the U.S. Department of Energy's Atmospheric Studies in Complex Terrain (ASCOT) program. The lidar measured winds channeled within a narrow mountain valley on seven experiment nights, between 2300 and 1100 MST. We were able to quantitatively define the structure of the nocturnal drainage winds, monitor their decay in the morning, and sense the formation of a thermally driven up-valley flow later in the day.