GPM OLYMPEX Aircraft Navigation Data for Citation II Flights

GPM Ground Validation UND Citation Navigation Data OLYMPEX V1 provides navigation measurements from the Cessna Citation II aircraft during the Olympic Mountains Experiment field campaign. The dataset includes altitude, pressure, temperature, airspeed, and ground speed readings collected from November 12 to December 19, 2015. It is produced by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration as part of the Global Precipitation Measurement mission's ground validation efforts.

Use Cases

• Calibrating satellite precipitation estimates by comparing ground-based aircraft sensor data with remote measurements.
• Analyzing flight-level wind conditions using recorded airspeed and ground speed parameters.
• Studying atmospheric profiles during winter storms over the Olympic Mountains using altitude, pressure, and temperature time-series data.
• Validating numerical weather prediction models with high-resolution in-situ navigation observations from a defined field campaign.

Strengths

• Data originates from a defined NASA field campaign (OLYMPEX) with a clear scientific purpose for GPM satellite validation.
• Covers a specific 38-day operational period from November 12 to December 19, 2015, providing temporally bounded observations.
• Includes multiple concurrent navigation measurements (altitude, pressure, temperature, airspeed, ground speed) for cross-parameter analysis.
• Dataset is hosted on multiple authoritative platforms (Data.gov and NASA Earthdata), indicating vetting and sustained availability.

Limitations

• Critical metadata is missing: exact row count, file size, and specific column names are not provided on any platform.
• Source platforms list conflicting 'last updated' dates (2015-12-19 on NASA Earthdata vs. 2026-03-13 on Data.gov), creating ambiguity about maintenance.
• The license is ambiguously listed as 'other-license-specified' on Data.gov but is 'None' on NASA Earthdata, requiring user verification.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Collected by instrumentation aboard the Cessna Citation II aircraft during dedicated research flights.

Time Range

2015-11 12 to 2015-12-19

Freshness

2026-03-13 01:59:15.753962

Geography

Olympic Mountains region (inferred from campaign name OLYMPEX), specific flight paths not detailed.