CALIPSO Lidar Level 1.5 Profile data provides calibrated, geolocated, and cloud-cleared profiles of attenuated backscatter for atmospheric study. The product synthesizes Level 1B and Level 2 data products, including the Vertical Feature Mask. It was produced by NASA and the French CNES from the CALIOP instrument on the CALIPSO satellite, launched in 2006, with data collection now complete.
Use Cases
- Analyze vertical profiles of attenuated backscatter to identify atmospheric layers and particle types.
- Study cloud-aerosol interactions by correlating cloud-cleared backscatter profiles with feature mask classifications.
- Validate climate models using calibrated, geolocated backscatter data spanning the satellite's mission lifetime.
- Investigate spatial and temporal trends in aerosol distribution using the synthesized, spatially averaged profile data.
Strengths
- Data is calibrated, geolocated, and cloud-cleared, providing a processed analysis-ready product.
- Derived from a synthesis of multiple standard data products (Level 1B and Level 2) for consistency.
- Collected by the dedicated CALIOP instrument as part of the international A-Train satellite constellation.
Limitations
- Data collection is complete, limiting analysis to historical observations up to the mission end date.
- Specific row counts, file sizes, and temporal coverage bounds are not provided in the metadata.
Provenance
- Source
- NASA's Atmospheric Science Data Center (ASDC) and the French Centre National D'Etudes Spatiales (CNES).
- Collection Method
- Data collected by the CALIOP lidar instrument on the CALIPSO satellite and processed into Level 1.5 profiles.
- Time Range
- Covers the operational lifetime of the CALIPSO mission from its 2006 launch until data collection completion.
- Freshness
- Data collection is complete; product metadata was last updated in August 2020.
- Geography
- Global coverage from the sun-synchronous orbit of the CALIPSO satellite within the A-Train constellation.