Measurements of atmospheric turbulence strength by coherent optical scintillation

Summary The strength of the atmospheric turbulence is measured by an optical scintillation method. The obtained quantity is the structure constant at optical frequencies. As all turbulence parameters, this quantity is strongly affected by meteorological and local conditions, therefore it is of interest to measure it in different conditions and locations. The present measurements were made to characterize the turbulence at Florence. Paper presented at the 1° Congresso del Gruppo Nazionale per la Fisica dell'Atmosfera e dell'Oceano, Rome, June 19–22, 1984.