LDV for airdrops

1. A method comprising:

transmitting, by one or more transceivers in a LIDAR apparatus coupled to an airborne vehicle radiation from radiation source in the LIDAR apparatus to target areas between the airborne vehicle and a dropzone target;

receiving, by the one or more transceivers in the LIDAR apparatus, scattered radiation from the target areas wherein said target areas are at a plurality of altitudes between the airborne vehicle and the dropzone target;

determining respective wind characteristics of the scattered radiation from each of the target areas;

generating a three dimensional wind velocity map by volume averaging the respective wind characteristics between the airborne aircraft and at least the dropzone target; and

computing an aerial release point for a precision airdrop based on the generated wind velocity map and a location of the dropzone target.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising releasing a person or payload from the airborne vehicle at the computed aerial release point.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the payload comprises one or more of supplies, an explosive device, fuel, vehicles, equipment, or medical supplies.

4. The method of claim 2 , wherein the payload comprises an actuator configured to steer the payload while in the air.

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising controlling the airborne vehicle based on the respective wind characteristics so as to reduce turbulence experienced by the airborne vehicle.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the determining respective wind characteristics comprises determining a wind velocity at multiple points along an axis of one or more beams of radiation.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the determining a wind velocity comprises determining at least one of a horizontal wind velocity or a vertical wind velocity.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the generating a wind velocity map further comprises generating a wind velocity map based on time and location stamped data provided by a GPS.

9. The method of claim 1 , further comprising displaying the generated wind velocity map to a pilot of the airborne vehicle.

10. A LIDAR apparatus coupled to an airborne vehicle, the apparatus comprising:

a source configured to produce a beam;

a modulator configured to receive the beam and to produce one or more modulated beams;

one or more transceivers configured to receive the one or more modulated beams via a corresponding one or more optical fibers chosen from a first plurality of optical fibers, transmit the one or more modulated beams to target areas between the airborne vehicle and a dropzone target, and receive one or more scattered signals from the target areas, wherein said target areas are at a plurality of altitudes between the airborne vehicle and the dropzone target;

an optical mixer coupled to the one or more transceivers via a corresponding one or more optical fibers chosen from a second plurality of optical fibers, and coupled to the source via one or more optical fibers chosen from a third plurality of optical fibers, the optical mixer configured to receive the one or more scattered signals from the corresponding one or more transceivers, receive one or more reference beams from the source, and determine, for each of the one or more transceivers, a corresponding one or more Doppler shifts based on the respective one or more reference beams and the one or more scattered signals; wherein said scattered signals reflect time delays from a start of said produced beam, said time delays being commensurate with said plurality of altitudes; and

a processor configured to generate a three dimensional wind velocity map between the airborne aircraft and at least the dropzone target based on the one or more Doppler shifts and volume averaging of the Doppler shifts at said target areas, and compute an aerial release point for a precision airdrop based on the generated wind velocity map and a location of the dropzone target.

11. The LIDAR apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the one or more transceivers are gimbal-mounted to the airborne vehicle.

12. The LIDAR apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the one or more transceivers are configured to direct the one or more modulated beams towards the dropzone target.

13. The LIDAR apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the one or more scattered signals comprise a wind velocity associated with a corresponding target area.

14. The LIDAR apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the wind velocity comprises at least one of a horizontal wind velocity or a vertical wind velocity.

15. The LIDAR apparatus of claim 10 , further comprising a chassis configured to house the source, the modulator, and the optical mixer.

16. The LIDAR apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the one or more transceivers are coupled to the chassis via optical fibers.

17. The LIDAR apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the one or more transceivers are further configured to receive one or more scattered signals from at least 6 target areas.

18. A method comprising:

transmitting, by one or more transceivers in a LIDAR apparatus, radiation from a radiation source in the LIDAR apparatus to target areas above a dropzone target, wherein said target areas are at a plurality of altitudes between said LIDAR apparatus and said dropzone target;

receiving, by the one or more transceivers in the LIDAR apparatus, scattered radiation from the target areas;

determining respective wind characteristics of the scattered radiation from each of the target areas; generating a three dimensional wind velocity map by volume averaging the respective wind characteristics above the dropzone target; and transmitting the wind velocity map to one or more airborne vehicles.