SCIDAR
SCIDAR, short for scintillation detection and ranging, is an optical remote-sensing technique used to characterize atmospheric turbulence by analyzing the scintillation (intensity) fluctuations of starlight as it passes through the Earth’s atmosphere. It provides vertical profiles of the refractive-index structure constant, Cn^2(h), and, in many implementations, wind-speed information as a function of altitude h, typically from near the ground to tens of kilometers above it. The data are especially valuable for understanding how turbulence degrades astronomical seeing and for informing adaptive optics systems.
Principle of operation is based on observing the scintillation patterns produced by a bright binary star with
Variants of SCIDAR include Generalized SCIDAR, which extends sensitivity to lower and higher altitudes by altering
Applications span astronomical adaptive optics, site-testing and characterization of seeing, and atmospheric research. Limitations include the