← Back to NASA Technology Projects
Completed TRL 4 (started at 4, targeting 4)
We have developed a laboratory prototype laser operating at 308 nm for the remote detection of OH using IPDA LIDAR. The concept is similar to the differential hard-target LIDARS used by Jim Abshire and Haris Riris that measure CO2and CH4in the near-infrared. In these experiments a narrow linewidth laser is directed at a partially reflective surface in the far-field and a small fractionof the reflected light is detected with a filtered PMT. The laser is scanned through a single rotational feature to provide the differential absorption spectrum for a Beer's Law analysis that yields the column abundance.
One of the key goals of the 2017 Earth Science Decadal survey is to understand the sources and sinks of carbon dioxide and methane, and how they may change in the future. The reaction of OH with methane in the earth's troposphere is the primary sink of methane, accounting for 90% of its removal. Understanding this removal rate is essential to determine the atmospheric lifetime of methane, and thus, its impact on the climate. Measurements of the abundance of OH in the troposphere are limited to a few in situmeasurements and to isolated column measurements from fixed mountain-top observatories. Neither of these approaches can meet the science requirements laid out by the Decadal Survey. We are motivated to develop a mobile remote sensing capability to measure the tropospheric abundance of OH at a regional to global scale to meet the science goals of the next decade.
Listed on TechPort itself — the most direct way to ask about this specific project.
This is early/mid-stage (TRL 4) — the most realistic path in is NASA SBIR/STTR, which funds small businesses and research institutions to develop technology aligned with NASA's needs (equity-free, phased funding). Check whether a current SBIR/STTR solicitation topic overlaps with this project's technology area, or contact the project directly (above) to ask.
None of these are guaranteed paths for this specific project — TechPort itself doesn't have an "apply" button. Reaching out to the contact(s) above with a specific question is usually the fastest way to find out what's actually open.