At the University of Hertfordshire, we have been developing a new remote sensing facility (LITES) to explore the feasibility of using Raman and/or fluorescence backscattering for chemical aerosol profiling. This paper provides an overview of the instruments of the facility and measurement examples. LITES includes a ultra-high-energy Nd:YAG/OPO setup, spectroscopic equipment with high spectral resolution, several imaging and single detectors that allow for time-resolved (lidar) signal detection, a Raman/fluorescence microscope, and a suite of gas and aerosol chambers. We present examples of elastic, rotational and vibrational spectroscopic lidar signals, as well as in-situ microscopic spectrums of dust and bio-aerosol compounds.