Lidar remote sensing of the aquatic environment: invited

This paper is a review of lidar remote sensing of the aquatic environment. The optical properties of seawater relevant to lidar remote sensing are described. The three main theoretical approaches to understanding the performance of lidar are considered (the time-dependent radiative transfer equation, Monte Carlo simulations, and the quasi-single-scattering assumption). Basic lidar instrument design considerations are presented, and examples of lidar studies fromsurface vessels, aircraft, and satellites are given. (C) 2020 Optical Society of America Provided under the terms of the OSA Open Access Publishing Agreement