The primary objective of the Lab is to perform basic research in the field of atmospheric optics, including optical properties of the atmospheric composition; atmospheric turbulence; atmospheric radiative transfer; laser beam propagation in the atmosphere; as well as the detection and remote sensing of the atmosphere etc. New methods, technology and instruments for atmospheric sounding are developed in the lab. The main science and technology subjects of the lab are:
1. Optical properties of the climate-relevant atmospheric composition:
 The characteristics of high resolution spectroscopy of the atmospheric molecule such as CO₂、CH₄、water vapor etc;
 Micro-physical, chemical, and optical properties of the atmospheric aerosol.

The experiment system for high-resolution spectroscopy of atmosphericmolecule

2. Atmospheric radiative transfer:
 High spectral resolution atmospheric absorption, emission, scattering, and atmospheric transmittance;
 Radiative characteristic of aerosol and clouds, etc;
 Radiative transfer modeling and remote sensing of the atmosphere.

The observed and calculated horizontal 1km atmospheric transmittance(left), and the slant atmospheric solar spectra(right)

3. Laser beam propagation in the atmosphere:
 Characteristics of atmospheric turbulence and the measurements of the parameters of optical turbulence;
 Effects of optical wave propagating through turbulent atmosphere and phase compensation with adaptive optics system;
 Ultrashort laser pulses propagation in air, the related nonlinear optical effects and their applications in atmospheric science.

4. The remote sensing of the atmosphere：

  Long term observing and studying the spatial and temporal variations of atmospheric components (such as CO₂、CH₄、O₃、SO₂、NO₂、water vapor etc), aerosol, temperature and wind field to construct statistical model and database of atmospheric parameters profile.
 New methodology and technique exploration, especially in active lidar atmospheric measurements, for example, DIAL, Raman lidar, multi-wavelength Raman-Mie lidar, High Spectral Resolution Lidar (HSRL), depolarization lidar and Doppler lidar etc.
 Atmospheric detection instruments development, such as lidar system, optical particle counter (OPC), sun photometer, and other new instruments for atmospheric parameter measurement.

Lidar measurements of stratospheric O3 (left),
aerosol after Mt Pinatubo eruption in 1991 (right)