Sea Water Attenuation Remote Measurement by LIDAR (SWARM-L)

Areté Associates proposes to design a prototype Sea Water Attenuation Remote Measurement by LIDAR (SWARM-L) system for measuring the optical attenuation coefficient, Kd, of sea-water based on our extensive experience of designing and fielding blue-green LIDAR systems. Core design components of SWARM-L consist of a 532nm short pulsed laser transmitter, a high speed, high sensitivity, solid state receiver, LIDAR signal processing utilizing Areté Associates’ expertise in ocean optics and modeling, and an innovative approach to address packaging and ease of use. For Phase I, a preliminary design will be completed, including component specifications, component trade studies, and preliminary system validation through simulation. Areté Associates has the foremost experience with understanding the requirements necessary to design and build a sensor suited for the measurement of the optical attenuation coefficient, Kd, which will correlate to the AMCM blue-green LIDAR systems’ Ksys. This allows quick and safe sampling of the relevant optical attenuation in the AMCM operational environment for the purpose of preparing optimal mission plans for the ALMDS and RAMICS MCM systems.