Abstract

A novel instrument has been designed to measure the nighttime atmospheric water vapor column abundance by near-infrared absorption spectrophotometry of the Moon. The instrument provides a simple, effective, portable, and inexpensive means of rapidly measuring the water vapor content along the lunar line of sight. Moreover, the instrument is relatively insensitive to the atmospheric model used and, thus, serves to provide an independent calibration for other measures of precipitable water vapor from both ground- and space-based platforms.

© 2011 Optical Society of America

Water vapor absorption spectra of the upper atmosphere (45–185 cm⁻¹)

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Appl. Opt. 14(9) 2146-2150 (1975)

A Spectrophotometer for the Determination of the Water Vapor in a Vertical Column of the Atmosphere

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Radiometer for the measurement of water vapor in the upper atmosphere from space

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Appl. Opt. 32(33) 6764-6776 (1993)

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S. L. Bragg and J. D. Kelley
Appl. Opt. 26(3) 506-513 (1987)

Three-channel solar radiometer for the determination of atmospheric columnar water vapor

Kurtis J. Thome, Mark W. Smith, James M. Palmer, and John A. Reagan
Appl. Opt. 33(24) 5811-5819 (1994)