Dr. Kenji Numata Profile

Dr. Kenji Numata

Research Scientist at NASA Goddard Space Flight Ctr

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Publications (23)

PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | February 20, 2018

Fiber-based laser MOPA transmitter packaging for space environment

Proc. SPIE. 10513, Components and Packaging for Laser Systems IV

KEYWORDS: Packaging, Transmitters, Fiber amplifiers, Optical amplifiers, LIDAR, Fiber lasers, Pulsed laser operation

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | February 15, 2018

Laser system development for gravitational-wave interferometry in space

Proc. SPIE. 10511, Solid State Lasers XXVII: Technology and Devices

KEYWORDS: Fiber amplifiers, Optical amplifiers, Laser development, Interferometry, Laser interferometry, Space operations, Laser systems engineering

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | February 15, 2018

Progress on laser technology for proposed space-based sodium lidar

Proc. SPIE. 10511, Solid State Lasers XXVII: Technology and Devices

KEYWORDS: Doppler effect, Polarization, LIDAR, Luminescence, Crystals, Laser applications, Semiconductor lasers, Raman spectroscopy, Sodium, Pulsed laser operation

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | February 15, 2018

Progress on Raman laser for sodium resonance fluorescence lidar

Proc. SPIE. 10511, Solid State Lasers XXVII: Technology and Devices

KEYWORDS: Mirrors, LIDAR, Crystals, Laser development, Raman spectroscopy, Laser resonators, Laser crystals, Sodium, Q switched lasers, Gadolinium

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | November 20, 2017

LIDAR technology for measuring trace gases on Mars and Earth

Proc. SPIE. 10565, International Conference on Space Optics — ICSO 2010

KEYWORDS: Methane, Carbon dioxide, LIDAR, Sensors, Gases, Carbon dioxide lasers, Clouds, Oxygen, Mars, Absorption

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Trace gases and their isotopic ratios in planetary atmospheres offer important but subtle clues as to the origins of a planet's atmosphere, hydrology, geology, and potential for biology. An orbiting laser remote sensing instrument is capable of measuring trace gases on a global scale with unprecedented accuracy, and higher spatial resolution that can be obtained by passive instruments.

For Earth we have developed laser technique for the remote measurement of the tropospheric CO2, O2, and CH4 concentrations from space. Our goal is to develop a space instrument and mission approach for active CO2 measurements. Our technique uses several on and off-line wavelengths tuned to the CO2 and O2 absorption lines. This exploits the atmospheric pressure broadening of the gas lines to weigh the measurement sensitivity to the atmospheric column below 5 km and maximizes sensitivity to CO2 changes in the boundary layer where variations caused by surface sources and sinks are largest. Simultaneous measurements of O2 column use a selected region in the Oxygen A-band. Laser altimetry and atmospheric backscatter can also be measured simultaneously, which permits determining the surface height and measurements made to thick cloud tops and through aerosol layers.

We use the same technique but with a different transmitter at 1.65 um to measure methane concentrations. Methane is also a very important trace gas on earth, and a stronger greenhouse gas than CO2 on a per molecule basis. Accurate, global observations are needed in order to better understand climate change and reduce the uncertainty in the carbon budget. Although carbon dioxide is currently the primary greenhouse gas of interest, methane can have a much larger impact on climate change. Methane levels have remained relatively constant over the last decade but recent observations in the Arctic have indicated that levels may be on the rise due to permafrost thawing. NASA’s Decadal Survey underscored the importance of Methane as a greenhouse gas and called for a mission to measure CO2, CO and CH4. Methane has absorptions in the mid-infrared (3.3 um) and the near infrared (1.65 um). The 3.3 um spectral region is ideal for planetary (Mars) Methane monitoring, but unfortunately is not suitable for earth monitoring since the Methane absorption lines are severely interfered with by water. The near infra-red overtones of Methane at 1.65 um are relatively free of interference from other atmospheric species and are suitable for Earth observations. The methane instrument uses Optical Parametric Generation (OPG) along with sensitive detectors to achieve the necessary sensitivity. Our instrument generates and detects tunable laser signals in the 3.3 or 1.65 um spectral regions with different detectors in order to measure methane on Earth or Mars. For Mars, the main interest in methane is its importance as a biogenic marker.

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SPIE Journal Paper | September 1, 2017

Methane optical density measurements with an integrated path differential absorption lidar from an airborne platform

Riris, Haris , Numata, Kenji , Wu, Stewart , Gonzalez, Brayler , Rodriguez, Michael , Scott, Stan , Kawa, Stephan , Mao, Jianping

JARS Vol. 11 Issue 03

KEYWORDS: LIDAR, Optical parametric oscillators, Absorption, Transmitters, Methane, Sensors, Absorbance, Optical testing, Clouds, Receivers

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | August 30, 2017

New semiconductor laser technology for gas sensing applications in the 1650nm range

Proc. SPIE. 10406, Lidar Remote Sensing for Environmental Monitoring 2017

KEYWORDS: Mid-IR, Tunable lasers, Methane, Carbon dioxide, LIDAR, Laser applications, Semiconductor lasers, Pollution

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | May 5, 2017

A multi-wavelength IR laser for space applications

Proc. SPIE. 10191, Laser Radar Technology and Applications XXII

KEYWORDS: Mid-IR, Near infrared, Ferroelectric materials, Optical parametric oscillators, LIDAR, Laser applications, Infrared lasers, Diodes, Laser crystals

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | May 5, 2017

Methane measurements from space: technical challenges and solutions

Proc. SPIE. 10191, Laser Radar Technology and Applications XXII

KEYWORDS: Carbon, Transmitters, Beam splitters, Methane, Optical parametric oscillators, LIDAR, Sensors, Spectroscopy, Laser applications, Receivers, Fiber lasers, Climate change, Airborne laser technology, Absorption

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | May 5, 2016

Femtosecond photon-counting receiver

Proc. SPIE. 9858, Advanced Photon Counting Techniques X

KEYWORDS: Transmitters, Beam splitters, Femtosecond phenomena, Interferometers, Sensors, Single photon, Receivers, Distance measurement, Optical correlators, Signal detection

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | September 1, 2015

Optical parametric technology for methane measurements

Proc. SPIE. 9612, Lidar Remote Sensing for Environmental Monitoring XV

KEYWORDS: Carbon, Transmitters, Methane, Optical parametric oscillators, LIDAR, Sensors, Gases, Receivers, Pulsed laser operation, Absorption

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | September 1, 2015

Fiber-based, trace-gas, laser transmitter technology development for space

Proc. SPIE. 9612, Lidar Remote Sensing for Environmental Monitoring XV

KEYWORDS: Transmitters, Fiber amplifiers, Optical amplifiers, Carbon dioxide, Aerospace engineering, LIDAR, Laser applications, Laser development, Carbon dioxide lasers, Fiber lasers

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | October 24, 2012

Airborne measurement of atmospheric methane concentration using pulsed lidar

Proc. SPIE. 8511, Infrared Remote Sensing and Instrumentation XX

KEYWORDS: Carbon, Methane, Carbon dioxide, LIDAR, Climate change, Infrared radiation, Earth's atmosphere, Electronic support measures, Atmospheric optics, Absorption

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SPIE Journal Paper | September 12, 2012

Ground demonstration of trace gas lidar based on optical parametric amplifier

Numata, Kenji , Riris, Haris , Li, Steven , Wu, Stewart , Kawa, Stephan , Krainak, Michael , Abshire, James

JRS Vol. 6 Issue 01

KEYWORDS: LIDAR, Carbon monoxide, Optical amplifiers, Crystals, Near infrared, Gases, Fiber amplifiers, Gas lasers, Absorption, Signal detection

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | May 14, 2012

Ground and airborne methane measurements with an optical parametric amplifier

Proc. SPIE. 8379, Laser Radar Technology and Applications XVII

KEYWORDS: Methane, Optical amplifiers, LIDAR, Sensors, Optical testing, Earth's atmosphere, Nonlinear crystals, Signal detection, Atmospheric optics, Absorption

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | February 16, 2012

Fiber lasers and amplifiers for space-based science and exploration

Proc. SPIE. 8237, Fiber Lasers IX: Technology, Systems, and Applications

KEYWORDS: Transmitters, Fiber amplifiers, Carbon dioxide, LIDAR, Carbon dioxide lasers, Fiber lasers, Oxygen, Semiconductor lasers, Pulsed laser operation, Absorption

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | September 30, 2011

Spaceflight laser development for future remote sensing applications

Proc. SPIE. 8182, Lidar Technologies, Techniques, and Measurements for Atmospheric Remote Sensing VII

KEYWORDS: Transmitters, Carbon dioxide, LIDAR, Laser applications, Laser development, Carbon dioxide lasers, Space telescopes, Pulsed laser operation, Laser systems engineering, Absorption

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | September 17, 2011

Spaceborne laser development for future remote sensing applications

Proc. SPIE. 8154, Infrared Remote Sensing and Instrumentation XIX

KEYWORDS: Transmitters, Carbon dioxide, LIDAR, Sensors, Remote sensing, Laser applications, Carbon dioxide lasers, Space telescopes, Pulsed laser operation, Laser systems engineering

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | September 14, 2011

Development of optical parametric amplifier for lidar measurements of trace gases on Earth and Mars

Proc. SPIE. 8159, Lidar Remote Sensing for Environmental Monitoring XII

KEYWORDS: Near infrared, Optical amplifiers, Carbon dioxide, LIDAR, Sensors, Crystals, Gases, Mars, Earth's atmosphere, Absorption

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | August 20, 2011

Lidar technology for measuring trace gases on Mars and Earth

Proc. SPIE. 8192, International Symposium on Photoelectronic Detection and Imaging 2011: Laser Sensing and Imaging; and Biological and Medical Applications of Photonics Sensing and Imaging

KEYWORDS: Methane, Carbon dioxide, LIDAR, Spectrometers, Gases, Climate change, Mars, Earth's atmosphere, Signal detection, Absorption

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | August 28, 2010

Spaceborne laser transmitters for remote sensing applications

Proc. SPIE. 7808, Infrared Remote Sensing and Instrumentation XVIII

KEYWORDS: Transmitters, Carbon dioxide, LIDAR, Remote sensing, Laser applications, Carbon dioxide lasers, Semiconductor lasers, Laser resonators, Pulsed laser operation, Laser systems engineering

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | February 18, 2010

Seeded nanosecond optical parametric generator for trace gas measurements

Proc. SPIE. 7582, Nonlinear Frequency Generation and Conversion: Materials, Devices, and Applications IX

KEYWORDS: Near infrared, Carbon dioxide, LIDAR, Sensors, Crystals, Gases, Nd:YAG lasers, Laser crystals, Earth's atmosphere, Absorption

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLE | June 15, 2006

Interferometric testbed for sub-nanometer stabilization of environmental motions for testing of advanced space telescopes

Proc. SPIE. 6265, Space Telescopes and Instrumentation I: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter

KEYWORDS: Actuators, Mirrors, Ferroelectric materials, Metrology, Interferometers, Sensors, Interferometry, Space telescopes, Nanoimprint lithography, James Webb Space Telescope

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Showing 5 of 23 publications

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