Detecting Thermodynamic Cloud Phases Using Optical Polarization
Better weather forecasting with cloud phase detection
Background:
Clouds are composed of liquid and/or ice phases, which can make atmospheric measurements challenging. The detection of cloud phases is crucial for remote sensing measurements which contribute to climate models and environmental monitoring. Clouds constitute a large source of uncertainty for such models, but knowing cloud phases can limit this uncertainty. Present methods of determining cloud thermodynamic phase suffer from a lack of accuracy and expensive operational costs.
Description:
The current innovation utilizes optical polarization techniques to detect cloud phases. Such techniques take advantage of how clouds scatter sunlight. A cloud of water droplets will scatter light differently than a cloud of ice crystals, resulting in a measurable Stokes polarization parameter which can allow for discernment of cloud phase. MSU researchers have demonstrated an effective, low-cost polarimeter combined with an image sensor and processor. This innovation can spatially resolve a portion of the sky and determine the polarization parameter of a given cloud, and its accuracy has been verified with state-of-the-art dual-polarization lidar.
Figure 1: All-sky images of cloud showing the Stokes polarization parameter versus
scattering angle, measured at 530 nm, for (left) a cloud composed of liquid water
droplets, and (right) a cloud composed of ice crystals. At scattering angles less
than 60°, the sign of the Stokes polarization parameter can differentiate between
liquid and ice clouds.
Benefits:
- Increased accuracy of cloud phase detection
- Decreased investment and maintenance costs for equipment
- Fully integrated technology which contains polarimeter, sensor, and processor
Opportunity:
- Publication: Laura M. Eshelman, Martin Jan Tauc, and Joseph A. Shaw, "All-sky polarization imaging of cloud thermodynamic phase," Opt. Express 27, 3528-3541 (2019)
- US patent 11499911 available for license and commercialization
- Access to state-of-the-art equipment and expertise for cloud phase sensing development
- Collaborate on research projects with experts in atmospheric detection
- Licensing opportunities for cloud phase sensing technologies
Contact:
Daniel Juliano, daniel.juliano@montana.edu, 406-994-7483