The Geoscience Laser Altimetry/Ranging System

The Geoscience Laser Altimetry/Ranging System (GLARS) is a planned highly precise laser distance-measuring system to be used for geoscience measurements requiring extremely accurate geodetic observations from a space platform. The system combines the attributes of a pointable laser ranging system making observations to retroreflectors placed on the ground with those of a nadir-looking laser altimeter making height observations to ground, ice sheet, and oceanic surfaces. In the ranging mode, centimeter-level precise baseline and station coordinate determinations will be made on grids consisting of 100 to 200 targets separated by distances from a few tens of kilometers to about 1000 km. These measurements will be used for studies of seismic zone crustal deformations and tectonic plate motions. Ranging measurements will also be made to a coarser, but globally distributed, array of retroreflectors for both precise geodetic and orbit determination applications. In the altimetric mode, relative height determinations will be obtained with approximately decimeter vertical precision and 70-100-m horizontal resolution. Altimetric profiles consisting of nearly contiguous spots will be available when the system is operated at 40 pulses per second. The height data will be used to study surface topography and roughness, ice sheet and lava flow thickness, and ocean dynamics. Waveform digitization will provide a measure of the vertical extent of topography within each footprint.