Observations of Typhoon Melissa during the Lidar In-Space Technology Experiment (LITE)

The Lidar In-Space Technology Experiment ( LITE) provided the first high-resolution ( 15 m) vertical profiling of clouds and aerosols from space. The LITE instrument flew aboard the space shuttle as its prime payload during Space Transportation System (STS)-64 from 9 to 20 September 1994. The lidar obtained vertical profiles of backscatter data at 1.064-, 0.532-, and 0.355-mum wavelengths through a cross section of Typhoon Melissa on 15 and 17 September 1994 during the strengthening and weakening phases of the cyclone. These data provide a unique high-resolution view of aerosols, clouds, and precipitation within the eye, eyewall, and cirrus shield of a tropical cyclone. The data show precipitation cascading from the eyewall into a 27-km-wide eye at the surface, with a clear column of air adjacent to the eyewall and surrounding the boundary layer clouds within the eye. During the weakening phase, the convection is found to be unorganized and weak near the center of circulation. By this time, Typhoon Melissa produced a layer of cirrus approximately 5 km thick that extended 4000 km between the center of circulation and the equator.