DISCOVER-AQ: Maryland Ground Site Air Quality Measurements for Satellite Validation

Maryland (Baltimore-Washington) deployment data from NASA's DISCOVER-AQ field study, collected at the Oldtown ground site. The dataset contains surface-level measurements of pollutants like ozone and nitrogen dioxide, intended to validate satellite observations. It was produced by NASA Langley, Goddard, and Ames Research Centers in collaboration with universities as part of a four-year campaign.

Use Cases

• Validate satellite column observations of ozone (O3) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) based on concurrent ground measurements.
• Analyze diurnal variability of air pollutants based on surface-level measurement time series.
• Investigate correlations between surface pollution and atmospheric column observations for formaldehyde (CH2O).
• Study horizontal pollution gradients and urban plumes in the Baltimore-Washington region.

Strengths

• Data collection is described as complete for the Maryland deployment.
• Campaign involved two NASA aircraft (P-3B and King Air) and multiple surface monitoring sites for multi-platform validation.
• Data is associated with a four-year NASA campaign conducted in collaboration with multiple research centers and universities.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data files include non-standard formats like BIN and ISO, which may require specialized tools to process.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Collection Method

Collected at the Oldtown ground site during the Maryland deployment, involving aircraft spiral profiling and ground-based monitoring.

Time Range

Campaign years include 2011 (Baltimore-Washington), 2013 (Houston, San Joaquin Valley), and 2014 (Denver). Specific dates for Oldtown site are not provided.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 03:13:54.896102; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Oldtown ground site, part of the Maryland (Baltimore-Washington, D.C.) deployment.