Aqua AIRS Spectral Outgoing Longwave Radiation Monthly Grid

Monthly spectral outgoing longwave radiation data derived from the Atmospheric InfraRed Sounder (AIRS) instrument on the EOS-Aqua spacecraft. The algorithm developed by Xianglei Huang at the University of Michigan computes all-sky and clear-sky OLR spectrally resolved at 10 cm-1 bandwidth. The data is presented on a 2x2 degree latitude/longitude grid.

Use Cases

• Modeling Earth's energy budget based on spectrally resolved outgoing longwave radiation.
• Analyzing atmospheric radiative processes based on all-sky and clear-sky OLR comparisons.
• Studying climate variability based on monthly, gridded spectral flux data.
• Validating climate models based on satellite-derived spectral OLR measurements.

Strengths

• Data is derived from the AIRS instrument on the EOS-Aqua spacecraft, a well-established satellite platform.
• Algorithm developed by Xianglei Huang at the University of Michigan provides a specific methodological foundation.
• Spectral resolution at 10 cm-1 bandwidth allows for detailed frequency analysis.
• Gridded data on a 2x2 degree latitude/longitude grid provides a consistent spatial structure.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment for large-scale analysis.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Derived from AIRS radiances using a specific algorithm.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 12:58:44.058018; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Global coverage on a 2x2 degree grid.