Project Title:

Lightweight Ozone Photometer for Balloons and Unmanned Aircraft

Physical Sciences Inc.
20 New England Business Center
Andover, MA 01810-1077

93-1		08.08	0003			Amount Requested $70,000

Lightweight Ozone Photometer for Balloons and Unmanned Aircraft 
(7114-09)

Abstract:

Physical Sciences Inc. (PSI) proposes to design, build, and test a 
laboratory pre-prototype of an optical absorption photometer for 
balloon-borne and unmanned aircraft sounding of the stratosphere 
and troposphere.  The device will use short-path UV absorption and 
high-precision signal processing circuitry to enable high-
sensitivity, absolute determinations of ozone concentrations from 
the ground to 40 km.  Laboratory tests in Phase I will evaluate the 
instrument sensitivity and operating characteristics for reduced 
optical path and three alternative noise-canceling signal 
processing concepts.  The end result of Phase I will be a working 
design of a prototype flight instrument to be built and flown in 
Phase II.

The optical absorption photometer has commercial applications for 
worldwide atmospheric monitoring networks.  The instrument is 
applicable to airborne stratospheric monitoring and satellite 
validation, as well as to tropospheric ozone monitoring and 
climatology research.

Ozone, stratosphere, troposphere, UV absorption, atmospheric 
sounding, remote sensing, airborne measurements