Fast up- and downloading high volumes of data from these satellites in the future will need again powerful lasers for example like our SodiumStar @ 589 nm which is the reference solution for adaptive optics in astronomy today to monitor the sodium layer at about 90 km altitude.
In current testing of our guide stars for these and other applications, we have incidentally seen their direct cw LIDAR capability as a byproduct detecting mainly humidity in this case also for lower altitudes demonstrating the fundamental capability of this approach. Although this absorption and scattering is an annoying problem for astronomy, cw-LIDAR using the appropriate wavelengths will help in the future to monitor the state of the various atmospheric altitude layers better.

The measurement of the UV protective ozone layer and the concentration of greenhouse gases by laser light has become a key technology for monitoring the atmosphere in order to protect our environment. Laser systems by TOPTICA Photonics and laser components by TOPTICA eagleyard support this technology by providing appropriate laser sources needed for the development of tools for sensing gases and aerosols in our atmosphere.

Image caption:
The Ozone-Layer is part of the stratosphere, and located between 15 to 50 kilometer altitude. Most (90 %) of the atmospheric Ozone can be found here.
In this plot we can see the changes of the height resolved fluorescence of the various atmospheric layers of a 60W powerful narrowband 589 nm laser projected from an astronomic telescope into outer space monitored from a side view over some minutes. The thin narrow strip at 90 km is the actual fluorescence from the sodium layer that is replenished by meteoric material in a daily fashion before the sodium reacts with other atmospheric constituents and trickles down to earth.

Image: Gunter Schuricht

At TOPTICA, we are proud that our technology is part of what help to understand the earth atmosphere and keep our world livable for our descendants. TOPTICA is looking for qualified and motivated people to master these challenges.
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