Interpretation of lidar ratio and depolarization ratio of ice clouds using spaceborne high-spectral-resolution polarization lidar

Abstract

The backscattering coefficient (β), lidar ratio (S), and depolarization ratio (δ) of ice particles were estimated over a wide range of effective radii to interpret spaceborne 355-nm high-spectral-resolution lidar data from the ATLID sensor onboard the EarthCARE satellite. Five randomly oriented ice particle shapes (3D ice) and two quasi-horizontally oriented particle types (2D ice) were analyzed using five effective angles. The size dependence of β, S, and δ was examined using physical optics and geometrical optics integral equation methods. Differences in β for the same effective radius and ice water content among particle types exceeded one order of magnitude. S-δ relations are useful for inferring ice particle habit and orientation using ATLID data from EarthCARE.