Depolarization properties of cirrus clouds from polarization lidar measurements over Hefei in spring

A new polarization lidar has been developed for detecting depolarization characteristics of aerosol and cirrus over Hefei (31.9 degree N, 117.16 degree E), China. The fundamental principle of polarization lidar is briefly introduced. Overall structure and specifications of the polarization lidar, as well as measurement method, are described. The observational results of depolarization ratio for cirrus over Hefei from February to May in 2005-2007 are presented and discussed. The exploring temperatures by radiosonde during the spring of 2005 are also presented and analyzed. The results show that the cirrus generally presents in the altitude from 7 to 12 km, and the depolarization ratio varies from 0.2 to 0.5. At the meanwhile, depolarization ratio appears a climbing tendency with the increasing height and the decreasing temperature.