The University of Alaska Fairbanks College of Natural Science and Mathematics will soon be home to a state-of-the-art lidar system that will enhance our understanding of the aurora and other space weather phenomena. The system, funded by a $326,000 National Science Foundation grant, is expected to be operational next fall and will be used by researchers at UAF’s Geophysical Institute and Alaska Space Grant Program. It will allow scientists to collect data on the speed, altitude and density of particles in the ionosphere— the electrically charged part of the atmosphere between about 60 and 400 kilometres above the Earth’s surface.