Abstract: We present, for the first time, a quantitative retrieval error-propagation study for a bistatic high spectral resolution lidar (HSRL) system intended for detailed quasi-global monitoring of aerosol properties from space. Our results demonstrate that supplementing a conventional monostatic HSRL with an additional receiver flown in formation at a scattering angle close to 165 degrees dramatically increases the information content of the measurements and allows for a sufficiently accurate charac…