High energy laser beam scattering by atmospheric aerosol aureoles

The interaction of high energy laser beams with aerosols in the atmosphere produces non-uniform temperature variations in the medium surrounding the aerosols. These non-uniformities in the ambient index of refraction act as scattering centers for the laser beam. The basic thermodynamics and conservation equations are solved numerically for pulsed high energy lasers interacting with aerosol water droplet systems. The resulting temperature variations at the surface of the aerosol and in the surrounding medium are found for a variety of input variables including absorbed laser intensity, pulse repetition rate, pulse time, and particle radius. The laser beam scattering is calculated through the Born approximation utilizing the computed temperatures. The range of variables for which laser beam scattering by aerosol aureole systems may be important is discussed.