Rocket studies of atmospheric scattering and the aerosol size distribution in the troposphere and lower stratosphere over Thumba

Measurements have been made of the atmospheric scattering in the ultraviolet (λ = 0.31 μm) during the 16 February 1980 solar eclipse rocket campaign. The amplitude of the scattered fluxes as well as the angular distribution could be measured from ground up to an altitude of about 24 km. The Rayleigh scattering component was estimated using standard atmospheric models and the observations have been used to study the scattering due to aerosols at tropospheric and lower stratospheric altitudes.