AIRS/Aqua NRT Infrared Radiances: Calibrated Geolocated Data for 2378 Channels

AIRS/Aqua L1B Near Real Time (NRT) Infrared (IR) geolocated and calibrated radiances V005 (AIRIBRAD_NRT) is a dataset from NASA's Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC). It contains calibrated radiances for 2378 infrared channels in the 3.74 to 15.4 micron spectrum, stored in 6-minute granules covering 90 footprints across track by 135 lines along track. The data is produced by the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) aboard the EOS Aqua satellite to meet three-hour latency requirements.

Use Cases

• Monitoring atmospheric temperature profiles based on infrared radiance measurements from 2378 channels.
• Assessing spectral response function shifts for instrument calibration studies based on the documented post-maneuver frequency changes.
• Developing near-real-time assimilation models for weather prediction based on the three-hour latency NRT product design.
• Analyzing geolocated radiance patterns for climate research based on the 90x135 footprint granule structure.

Strengths

• Provides data for 2378 distinct infrared spectral channels, enabling detailed atmospheric profiling.
• Designed for near-real-time delivery with a three-hour latency requirement for time-sensitive applications.
• Includes detailed documentation on instrument calibration shifts, specifying the impact on approximately 575 channels with brightness temperature shifts >0.1 K.

Limitations

• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• The product uses predictive rather than definitive ephemeris/attitude data, which may affect geolocation accuracy.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Data collected by the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) grating spectrometer aboard the EOS Aqua satellite.

Time Range

Near real-time coverage; specific temporal range not provided.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 06:15:51.402626; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Global coverage from a polar-orbiting satellite platform.