Using vacuum ultraviolet sources in the design of a fluorescence hygrometer

This paper describes a fluorescence hygrometer for measuring the microconcentration of water vapor in the stratosphere. The vacuum ultraviolet sources to be used in the hygrometer are considered. Questions of the temperature dependence of the characteristics of hydrogen and krypton glow-discharge lamps are discussed, as well as the operation of the lamps in the modulation regime. The results of laboratory and field tests of the hygrometer are presented.