Aircraft Navigation and Housekeeping Data for GPM Snowfall Validation

This dataset contains navigation and housekeeping data from NASA's DC-8 aircraft during the GCPEx mission, which aimed to improve satellite-based snowfall retrieval algorithms. It includes geo-located attributes such as altitude, pressure, air speed, and wind speed, collected in-flight and provided by the University of North Dakota's National Suborbital Education and Research Center. The data is available in two file types, primarily comma-delimited IWG1 format, covering most dates of the mission.

Use Cases

• Validating and improving satellite-based snowfall retrieval algorithms by providing in-situ aircraft measurements.
• Analyzing the relationship between microphysical snow properties and associated remote sensing observations.
• Studying flight-level atmospheric conditions, including wind speed, air speed, and pressure, during precipitation events.
• Coordinating model simulations of precipitating snow with real-time, geo-located aircraft navigation data.

Strengths

• Data was collected in-flight during a dedicated NASA mission (GCPEx) for algorithm validation.
• Contains multiple atmospheric and platform engineering measurements, including altitude, pressure, and wind speed.
• Available on multiple authoritative platforms (NASA Earthdata, Data.gov), indicating established provenance.

Limitations

• Specific row counts, file sizes, and a complete list of columns are not provided by any source.
• There are date inconsistencies where only one of the two file types (IWG1) is available.
• Conflicting 'last updated' dates exist across platforms (2026-03-13 vs. 2020-02-06).

Provenance

Source

National Suborbital Education and Research Center (NSERC) of the University of North Dakota, for NASA's GHRC DAAC.

Collection Method

Collected in-flight during the GCPEx mission and retrieved from the Real-Time Mission Monitor.

Time Range

Dates of the GCPEx mission (specific range not provided).

Freshness

2026-03-13 02:05:39.424800

Geography

Flight paths of the NASA DC-8 aircraft during the GCPEx mission.