The decomposition of turbulence-induced phase aberrations into Zernike polynomials is performed using simulation and numerical techniques, extending well-known analytic results when scintillation is weak. A spherical-wave geometry is assumed. Strong scintillation (Rytov variance > 0.3) has an impact on the distribution of aberration strength, and this impact depends on range and wavelength. A saturation effect is observed. Anisotropy affects the distribution of aberrations between nearby Zernike orders. Non-Kolmogorov exponents lower than 11/3 in magnitude tend to reduce the lower-order aberrations and slightly enhance the higher aberrations, as expected. The interplay of strong turbulence, anisotropy, and non-Kolmogorov exponents is also explored. Significant deviations from the existing weak-turbulence theory are found in some cases.
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