CarbonTracker-Lagrange: North American Atmospheric Carbon Footprints from OCO-2 Satellite

Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Stochastic Time-Inverted Lagrangian Transport (STILT) particle trajectory data products for particle receptors co-located with atmospheric column observations from the OCO-2 satellite. The data set provides footprint fields for 14 discrete vertical levels at each observation location, quantifying the influence of upwind surface fluxes on greenhouse gas concentrations. It is produced by the NASA Carbon Monitoring System (CMS) program to support policy and management activities.

Use Cases

• Modeling carbon source and sink attribution based on Lagrangian particle dispersion footprints.
• Analyzing vertical atmospheric column influences on greenhouse gas concentrations based on the 14 discrete receptor levels.
• Validating and improving carbon flux estimates using satellite-derived OCO 2 observation footprints.
• Supporting carbon policy and regulatory activities with quantified atmospheric transport data.

Strengths

• Data is derived from the NASA OCO-2 satellite and the WRF meteorological model, providing a high-quality observational and modeling foundation.
• Footprint fields are computed for 14 discrete vertical levels, offering detailed vertical profile information.
• Produced under the NASA Carbon Monitoring System program, which is designed to establish accuracy and quantitative uncertainties for policy support.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data may reflect geographic bias inherent to the North American focus and the OCO-2 satellite's observation pattern.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

WRF-STILT Lagrangian particle dispersion model applied backwards in time from OCO-2 satellite column observation locations.

Time Range

null

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 09:43:12.231881; freshness should be verified.

Geography

North America