Effect of turbulence-induced correlation on laser remote sensing errors

Using a 10.6-micron dual-laser differential-absorption laser remote sensing system, the short- and long-term temporal correlation of the returns from topographic targets and retroreflectors are measured in order to investigate the effect of atmospheric turbulence on laser remote sensing measurement errors. The results quantify the improvement obtained through use of a dual-laser system compared to that of a single-laser system and are in good agreement with those predicted by a theory which considers the effect of partial temporal correlation on the resultant measurement error.