BOREAS RSS-03: Helicopter-Based Atmospheric Measurements from 1994

During 1994, the BOREAS RSS-03 team collected helicopter-based atmospheric measurements across the Northern and Southern Study Areas. Data from an automatic sun-tracking photometer provides estimates of aerosol optical thickness and atmospheric water vapor across seven spectral channels from 440 to 1030 nm, plus a dedicated 940 nm channel for water vapor. This dataset supports analysis of atmospheric conditions during the Boreal Ecosystem-Atmosphere Study.

Use Cases

• Analyzing temporal trends in aerosol optical thickness based on multi-spectral photometer readings.
• Estimating atmospheric water column abundance using the dedicated 940 nm spectral channel.
• Validating satellite-derived atmospheric products with in-situ helicopter-based measurements.
• Studying spatial variability of atmospheric conditions across tower and auxiliary sites in the NSA and SSA.

Strengths

• Provides data from all three Intensive Field Campaigns (IFCs) conducted in 1994, offering temporal coverage.
• Includes measurements from eight specific spectral channels (440, 540, 613, 670, 870, 1030, and 940 nm), enabling multi-wavelength analysis.
• Collected at numerous tower and auxiliary sites across both the Northern (NSA) and Southern (SSA) Study Areas, suggesting spatial diversity.

Limitations

• Column names and specific data structure are unknown, limiting immediate usability.
• Conflicting metadata exists: one source lists a last update in 2026, while another indicates the data is from 1994, creating uncertainty about provenance and potential reprocessing.
• No explicit row count, file size, or sample frequency is provided, making it difficult to assess the dataset's scale.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), BOREAS RSS-03 team

Collection Method

Collected via an automatic sun-tracking photometer mounted on a helicopter.

Time Range

1994

Freshness

2026-03-13 12:29:24.001336

Geography

BOREAS Northern Study Area (NSA) and Southern Study Area (SSA)