# ATLID (Atmospheric Lidar)
*sensor . products*

## Specifications
- **collection**: products
- **manufacturer**: esa
- **deployment context**: orbital
- **sensor**: {"instrument_family":"lidar","measurement_principle":"active","wavelength_nm":355,"return_type":"hsrl"}
- **entity type**: sensor
- **last verified date**: 2026-06-04
- **verified by**: agency-doc
- **claim status**: agency-sourced
- **provider**: esa
- **attributes**: {"collection":"products","kind":"sensor","manufacturer":"esa","deployment_context":"orbital","sensor":"{\"instrument_family\":\"lidar\",\"measurement_principle\":\"active\",\"wavelength_nm\":355,\"return_type\":\"hsrl\"}"}
- **technology**: lidar

## Editorial
ATLID (Atmospheric Lidar) is a high-spectral-resolution lidar (HSRL) operating at 355 nm in the ultraviolet, developed by Airbus Defence and Space as one of four instruments aboard the ESA-JAXA EarthCARE satellite (Earth Clouds, Aerosols and Radiation Explorer). ATLID provides vertically resolved profiles of aerosol and thin-cloud backscatter, extinction, and depolarization ratio from the top of the atmosphere to the surface, enabling separation of aerosol and cloud contributions without reliance on assumed lidar ratios.[^esa-earthonline-atlid][^oscar-atlid][^amt-2023-earthcare]

Laser pulse energy at 355 nm is reported as 31-35 mJ in the AMT 2023 EarthCARE science and system overview [^amt-2023-earthcare] and as 38 mJ by the ESA EO Gateway ATLID instrument page [^esa-earthonline-atlid]; both sources are tier-1. The ESA value reflects the as-built and acceptance-tested configuration.

EarthCARE was launched on 28 May 2024. ATLID acquires data along a 355-nm lidar curtain with a footprint of 30 m and along-track sampling of 280 m; range resolution is 100 m in the troposphere and 500 m in the stratosphere.[^jaxa-atlid][^eoportal-earthcare] The instrument is designed to operate in coordination with the Cloud Profiling Radar (CPR), Multi-Spectral Imager (MSI), and Broadband Radiometer (BBR) aboard EarthCARE to support studies of cloud radiative effects and the Earth's energy budget.[^amt-2023-earthcare]

Selex Galileo (Florence) is cited in some references as a co-manufacturer alongside Airbus DS; this has not been described in detail in publicly released instrument documentation as of 2026-06-04.[^esa-earthonline-atlid]

| Methodology | Evidence class | Mission demonstrated |
|---|---|---|
| Atmospheric backscatter lidar (HSRL) | Demonstrated | EarthCARE |

## Compositional position
- earthcare (missions) --[mission_payloads]--> ATLID (Atmospheric Lidar)

## Sources
- [esa-earthonline-atlid] | ATLID instrument - ESA Earth Online | https://earth.esa.int/eogateway/instruments/atlid | tier=agency-doc | accessed=2026-06-04
- [oscar-atlid] | WMO OSCAR - ATLID instrument details | https://space.oscar.wmo.int/instruments/view/atlid | tier=agency-doc | accessed=2026-06-04
- [jaxa-atlid] | Atmospheric Lidar (ATLID) - JAXA EORC EarthCARE | https://www.eorc.jaxa.jp/EARTHCARE/about/inst_atlid_e.html | tier=agency-doc | accessed=2026-06-04
- [amt-2023-earthcare] | The EarthCARE mission - science and system overview (AMT, 2023) | https://amt.copernicus.org/articles/16/3581/2023/ | tier=peer-reviewed | accessed=2026-06-04
- [eoportal-earthcare] | EarthCARE (Earth Clouds, Aerosols and Radiation Explorer) - eoPortal | https://www.eoportal.org/satellite-missions/earthcare | tier=community | accessed=2026-06-04
- [airbus-atlid-2024] | Inside Atlid, mastering atmospheric LiDAR technology for space - Airbus (November 2024) | https://www.airbus.com/en/newsroom/stories/2024-11-inside-atlid-mastering-atmospheric-lidar-technology-for-space | tier=operator-marketing | accessed=2026-06-04

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Source: https://eo-atlas.org/products/sensor/atlid
Maintainer: SpectraWorks B.V. (CC-BY 4.0)