Analysis of lidar backscatter profiles in optically thin clouds.

The solution of the lidar equation for profiles of backscatter and extinction in optically thin clouds is constrained by values of the cloud transmittance determined from the elastically scattered lidar signals below and above the cloud. The method is extended to those cases in which an aerosol layer lies below or above the cloud layer. Examples are given in both cases. An analytical expression for the average lidar ratio in the cloud is derived for those cases in which molecular scattering is significant.