Comparison of polar stratospheric cloud properties observed with airborne lidar during SOLVE I and SOLVE II

The SAGE-III Ozone Loss and Validation Experiments (SOLVE) were conducted over the Arctic from 29 November 1999 to 16 March 2000 (SOLVE 1) and from 9 January to 12 February 2003 (SOLVE 11). During these campaigns, a multiple-wave length lidar system was operated from the NASA DC-8 aircraft to make measurements of background aerosols and polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs) on long-range flights across the wintertime polar vortex. Aerosol backscatter measurements were made at 1064, 622, and 311 nm and aerosol depolarization measurements were made at 1064 (SOLVE I only) and 622 nm. Meteorological analyses from the NASA Goddard Global Modeling and Assimilation Office were also used in this investigation. This paper presents results on the frequency of observation and spatial characteristics of the PSCs observed during the SOLVE campaigns. Optical characteristics of the PSCs are discussed, and their observations are related to temperature distributions and other meteorological conditions.