Aerospace technology originally developed for studying Earth?s atmosphere from space has been licensed to a U.S. company to increase the reliability of lasers used for everything from medical applications to detection of gas leaks. George E. Lockard of the Langley Research Center?s Remote Sensing Technology Branch invented the patented technology as part of his work developing a high?energy laser for measuring atmospheric water vapor, clouds, and aerosols.

For the first time properties of high-level cirrus clouds that may influence global warming were measured over the subtropical Pacific Ocean. The remotely piloted aircraft flew at an altitude of 50,000 feet near the Hawaiian islands.

NASA will take a revolutionary, global look at clouds with a new spaceborne radar capable of peering deep into their interior to study their structure, composition, and effects on climate. The CloudSat satellite, to be launched in 2003, will fly information with the Earth Observing System PM platform.