CALIPSO Tropospheric Aerosol Profiles Under Transparent Clouds

Monthly mean vertical profiles of aerosol extinction and optical depth are derived from the CALIOP lidar instrument. This specific product averages data only from satellite columns containing transparent clouds. The dataset was produced by NASA and CNES, with this version's generation ending in July 2020.

Use Cases

• Analyze the vertical distribution of the aerosol extinction coefficient at 532 nm under transparent cloud conditions.
• Study the spatial and temporal patterns of aerosol optical depth (AOD) in the troposphere below 12 km.
• Identify and characterize mineral dust aerosols using the included aerosol-type classification flags.
• Compare aerosol profiles across different sky conditions (e.g., Cloud-Free vs. Cloudy-Sky Transparent) for climate impact studies.

Strengths

• Data is quality-screened before averaging, as derived from the version 4.20 CALIOP level 2 aerosol profile product.
• Profiles are reported on a uniform spatial grid with monthly temporal resolution.
• Product is part of a long-term satellite mission launched in 2006, providing a multi-year record.

Limitations

• Data generation for this specific V4-20 product ended on July 1, 2020, making it temporally stale for current analysis.
• Profiles are limited to the troposphere, with no data reported above 12 km altitude.
• The dataset represents monthly averages, losing higher-frequency temporal variability.

Provenance

Source

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

Collection Method

Data collected by the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP) instrument and processed into Level 3 monthly mean profiles.

Time Range

Covers the period up to July 1, 2020, for the V4-20 product.

Freshness

Product generation ended July 1, 2020; succeeded by the V4.21 product for current data.

Geography

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