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Vehicles that are required to travel off-road in arid and semiarid conditions can be exposed to high levels of airborne particles. The airborne material, typically sand, can be detrimental to the performance of air-breathing engines and other mechanisms. The U. S. Army, for instance, has experienced the influence of airborne desert dust during testing of equipment at Yuma Proving Ground, and during critical operations at other desert locations. To enhance testing of equipment under loading of airborne desert dust, a laser-based nephelometer has been constructed which provides the real-time measurement of dust mass per unit volume. The instrument is sensitive and provides a linear response to dust concentration levels from 0.01 to above 25 g/m(3). Important is that: (1) the light scattering technique is independent of particle size distribution in the sampling volume; and (2) the instrument is rugged to allow for mounting and operation on vehicles traveling off-road in the desert environment. (C) 1996 American Institute of Physics.