CALIPSO Monthly Tropospheric Aerosol Profiles from Cloud-Free Observations

Monthly mean vertical profiles of aerosol optical properties derived from CALIOP lidar measurements. Data are reported on a uniform spatial grid for altitudes below 12 kilometers, with separate files for different sky conditions. The dataset is produced by NASA and CNES from the ongoing CALIPSO mission, which launched in 2006.

Use Cases

• Analyze vertical profiles of the aerosol extinction coefficient at 532nm to model aerosol radiative forcing.
• Study spatial and temporal trends in aerosol optical depth (AOD) for climate change attribution.
• Compare aerosol type and distribution information from the 'All Sky' and 'Cloud-Free' data products.
• Investigate the properties of mineral dust aerosols using profiles classified by level 2 aerosol-type flags.

Strengths

• Data is quality screened before averaging from the version 4.21 level 2 product.
• Continuous data collection since the CALIPSO satellite launch in April 2006.
• Provides profiles for specific sky conditions (e.g., Cloud-Free, Cloudy-Sky) enabling targeted analysis.

Limitations

• Profile data is limited to altitudes below 12 km, excluding stratospheric aerosols.
• Monthly averaged data lacks the temporal resolution of the original level 2 profiles.
• Specific sample sizes, row counts, and geographic coverage details are not provided.

Provenance

Source

NASA and the French space agency CNES via the CALIPSO satellite mission.

Collection Method

Derived from the CALIOP (Cloud-Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization) instrument level 2 aerosol profile product, version 4.21, after quality screening and averaging.

Time Range

Ongoing collection since the CALIPSO launch on April 28, 2006.

Freshness

Data collection is described as ongoing, with a product last updated in 2022.

Geography

Global coverage from the CALIPSO satellite, which flies in the A-Train constellation.