DISCOVER-AQ: P-3B Aircraft Meteorological and Navigational Data for California

The 2013 California deployment of NASA's DISCOVER-AQ campaign collected in situ meteorological and navigational data onboard a P-3B aircraft. NASA Langley, Goddard, Ames Research Centers and multiple universities collaborated on this four-year campaign to improve satellite monitoring of air quality. Data collection is complete and focuses on the San Joaquin Valley region.

Use Cases

• Validate satellite column observations of ozone, nitrogen dioxide, and formaldehyde based on in-situ aircraft measurements.
• Analyze diurnal variability of atmospheric pollutants based on surface-level and airborne data.
• Study horizontal scales of variability, such as urban plumes and steep gradients, based on flight path navigational data.
• Diagnose ground-level conditions influencing air quality based on spiral profiling of aerosol properties, meteorological variables, and trace gases.
• Correlate surface measurements with satellite observations to understand near-surface pollution factors.

Strengths

• Data collection is complete for the California deployment, providing a finalized dataset.
• Part of a four-year NASA campaign involving multiple research centers and universities.
• Focuses on a region (San Joaquin Valley) in violation of National Ambient Air Quality Standards, providing targeted observations.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data is specific to the 2013 California deployment and does not include other campaign regions.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

In situ data collected onboard NASA's P-3B aircraft during targeted airborne observations.

Time Range

2013

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 03:14:55.713660; freshness should be verified.

Geography

San Joaquin Valley, California