Global Stratospheric Aerosol Climatology with Multi-Instrument Data

GloSSAC provides a 44-45 year global climatology of stratospheric aerosol properties. It is a gap-free dataset primarily built from SAGE, OSIRIS, and CALIPSO satellite instrument measurements, supplemented by other space-based, ground-based, air, and balloon-borne data. The dataset is maintained by NASA's LARC ASDC.

Use Cases

• Analyzing long-term trends in stratospheric aerosol extinction coefficients at 525 nm and 1020 nm.
• Studying the global spatial distribution and vertical profiles of aerosols from volcanic eruptions or other sources.
• Validating and initializing climate models that require stratospheric aerosol optical properties.
• Investigating the radiative forcing and climatic effects of stratospheric aerosol layers.

Strengths

• Covers a 44-45 year time span, enabling analysis of long-term climatological trends.
• Integrates data from multiple satellite and in-situ instruments to create a continuous, gap-free record.
• Provides global spatial coverage for stratospheric aerosol properties.

Limitations

• Key metadata such as row count, file size, and specific column names are unavailable from all sources.
• Sources conflict on the dataset's temporal span (44 vs. 45 years) and the most recent update date (2024 vs. 2026).

Provenance

Source

NASA Langley Research Center Atmospheric Science Data Center (LARC ASDC).

Collection Method

Synthesized from the Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment (SAGE) series, OSIRIS, CALIPSO, and other space/air/ground instruments.

Time Range

44-45 years (exact start year not specified, spanning to approximately 2024-2026).

Freshness

2026-03-13 01:50:04.438054

Geography

Global.