CALIPSO Monthly Tropospheric Aerosol Profiles and Optical Depth

CALIPSO satellite data provides monthly mean vertical profiles of aerosol optical properties on a uniform spatial grid. The dataset, produced by NASA and the French CNES, is derived from the CALIOP lidar instrument and reports data below 12 km altitude. Data generation for this specific Version 4-20 product ended on July 1, 2020.

Use Cases

• Modeling aerosol optical depth (AOD) using its vertical integral from the extinction coefficient at 532nm.
• Analyzing the vertical distribution of mineral dust aerosols using profiles classified by aerosol-type flags.
• Studying aerosol-cloud interactions by comparing profiles from the four defined sky conditions (All Sky, Cloud-Free, Cloudy-Sky Transparent, Cloud-Sky Opaque).
• Investigating seasonal or regional trends in the aerosol extinction coefficient across the uniform spatial grid.
• Validating climate model outputs of tropospheric aerosol load using the monthly mean profile data.

Strengths

• Data is quality-screened before averaging, as derived from the version 4.20 CALIOP level 2 aerosol profile product.
• Profiles are reported for all aerosols and separately for mineral dust, enabling targeted analysis.
• Product is part of the international A-Train constellation, allowing for coincident Earth observations with other satellites.

Limitations

• Product generation for Version 4-20 ended in July 2020, creating a temporal gap before the subsequent V4.21 series.
• Data is reported only below 12 km altitude, limiting analysis of stratospheric aerosols.
• File structure is split into four types based on sky condition, requiring users to manage multiple files for complete analysis.

Provenance

Source

NASA and the French Centre National D’Etudes Spatiales (CNES) joint CALIPSO mission.

Collection Method

Collected by the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP) instrument on the CALIPSO satellite.

Time Range

Covers the period from the CALIPSO launch in April 2006 up to the end of V4.20 product generation on July 1, 2020.

Freshness

Data product generation ended on July 1, 2020; it is not updated.

Geography

Global coverage from the CALIPSO satellite's orbit within the A-Train constellation.