COMEX: AVIRIS-Classic Flight Lines for Methane Detection, 2014

2014's COMEX Project used AVIRIS-Classic airborne instrument data to quantify methane emissions from fossil fuel production in the Los Angeles area. This dataset provides flight lines and access links for Level 1B radiance and Level 2 reflectance data collected between May and September 2014. It serves as a catalog for a specific subset of the AVIRIS-Classic collection focused on validating space-based observation methods.

Use Cases

• Validating satellite-based methane detection algorithms using airborne spectral radiance and reflectance data.
• Mapping the spatial extent of flight campaigns over Los Angeles fossil fuel infrastructure.
• Linking to specific data granules (Level 1B/Level 2) for atmospheric correction or emission plume analysis.
• Studying the feasibility of space-based monitoring for localized, high-magnitude methane sources.

Strengths

• Data is associated with a defined NASA project (COMEX) with a clear scientific objective.
• Provides direct access links to calibrated radiance and reflectance products from a well-known instrument (AVIRIS-Classic).
• Temporal scope is precisely defined as May through September 2014.

Limitations

• Metadata completeness is low: column names, row counts, and file sizes are unknown across all platforms.
• Conflicting 'last updated' dates (2014 vs. 2026) suggest possible metadata staleness or errors.
• Dataset scope is limited to flight lines and access information, not the core spectral data itself.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Collection Method

Airborne remote sensing using the AVIRIS-Classic facility instrument.

Time Range

May 2014 - September 2014

Freshness

Last updated dates conflict: 2014-08-29 on NASA Earthdata vs. 2026-04 10 on Data.gov.

Geography

Los Angeles, California, USA area