
2.1.3 Backscatter profile reporting
Several possible data messages give the two-way attenuated backscatter profile. This consists of
2048 groups of five-character values (10,240 characters in total). Each character is 8 bits long and
therefore each 5 figure group is 40 bits. They are given as signed two complement integers and
numbers greater than 239–1 represent negative integers.
Therefore, each group actually represents negative, a value between –239 to +(239–1), rather than
0 to (240–1), which would be the case for unsigned, positive, 40-bit integers.
Apply the following two-stage process to correct the decimal value:
1. Convert the hexidecimal characters to a decimal number.
2. If the number resulting from this conversion is greater than 1048575, subtract
1,099,511,627,776, which is 240.
To use this backscatter coefficient in units of sr-1 m-1, the sensor multiplies the calculated decimal
number by a factor of 10-8. The values are scaled by the Attenuated_SCALE parameter, see
Table 5-1 (p. 30).
NOTE:
The last two values of the profile will always be zero. They are beyond the 10 km (32,800 ft)
range of the instrument.
NOTE:
The profile is not corrected for tilt angle even if cloud heights are corrected.
2.1.4 Mixing layer height
A Mixing Layer Height measurement option is available. This retrieves the height of the mixed
aerosol layer by applying the gradient method to the ceilometer backscatter signal. This
approach, based on the operational algorithm used by KNMI, searches for the drop in
backscatter associated with the transition from boundary layer aerosols to free troposphere. Since
the signals measured depend on the type and amount of aerosol present as well as the
background light level, the accuracy of the method varies, and therefore a quality factor is
assigned that indicates the confidence in the reported layer height. The module is also capable
of indicating the top of residual layers and aerosol layers aloft. To activate this option please
contact Campbell Scientific.
This is a guide to how well the mixing layer is defined on a scale 1 to 3 (3 is best). It is determined
by the magnitude of the difference between the average backscatter over a distance below the
MLH and the average backscatter over a distance above the MLH.
SkyVUE™PRO (CS135) LIDAR Ceilometer 7