Physics(13) With previous support from NSF's Major Research Instrumentation award program, Agnes Scott College, in collaboration with the Georgia Tech Research Institute, developed and built an eye-safe atmospheric laser radar (LIDAR) instrument that has been used by ASC undergraduates and faculty for research. Boundary layer aerosols, man-made plumes and contrails, tropospheric transport of smoke and dust, cloud physics and climatology, and stratospheric aerosol layer composition before and after a volcanic eruption are being studied by ASC students and faculty. With the present CCLI award, these individuals are making the device more "user friendly" and developing web-based curricular modules that enable its use across a broad spectrum of undergraduate physics and astronomy classes. The project is also developing an operator's manual for the instrument, refining MatLab-based software tools for data analysis, and developing an atmospheric measurements handbook. The assessment component of the project is focusing on best practices in attracting and retaining women in physics.
