The measurement of the global tropospheric wind field would address one of the key unmet observational requirements for understanding and predicting the future state of the earth-atmosphere system. Accurate, global tropospheric wind data are needed for several key unresolved climate questions. For a summary, please see the article by Baker et al. in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 1995, Volume 76, pp. 869-888. Such data would also address one of the important sources of error in the short - to medium- range (1-7 day) weather forecasts. 

A space-based Doppler wind lidar (DWL) would provide accurate, global tropospheric wind data for both climate studies and weather forecasting. The objectives of the Working Group on Space-Based Lidar Winds (hereafter referred to as Lidar Working Group) are to advocate the earliest possible deployment of a DWL, discuss the various uses of the data, and exchange information on the latest lidar technology developments.