An Analysis of Variations in the Signal of an Aerosol LIDAR as a Possible Indicator of Local Seismic Activity

Cross-spectral analysis was applied to the results of a nearly one-year LIDAR monitoring of aerosol emanation from the Earth’s crust in the tunnel of the Baksan Neutrino Observatory at the Institute of Nuclear Research, Russian Academy of Sciences (BNO). It was found that ∼40% of LIDAR signal energy is controlled by the variation of meteorological factors, namely, air pressure (the effect of “barometric pumping“) and humidity. The important fact is that the signal modulation involves components in the crustal deformation due to lunisolar tidal waves М2 and О1. We provide a statistical justification for the potential of LIDAR as a new tool in the monitoring of local seismic activity based on crustal aerosol variations.