GSFC EPIC/MERRA2 L3: Monthly Tropospheric Ozone Columns, 2015-Present

The GSFC EPIC/MERRA2 L3 Monthly Tropospheric Column Ozone product contains global tropospheric column ozone amounts averaged monthly from 2015 to the present. It is derived from measurements by the Earth Polychromatic Imaging Camera (EPIC) on the DSCOVR satellite, combined with stratospheric ozone estimates from the MERRA2 reanalysis. The data are provided as a single netCDF file at a 1x1 degree global resolution.

Use Cases

• Modeling tropospheric ozone transport and chemistry based on the global monthly column amounts.
• Analyzing long-term trends in tropospheric ozone pollution based on the time series from 2015 onward.
• Validating atmospheric chemistry models using the satellite-derived tropospheric column ozone data.
• Studying the spatial distribution of ozone in the lower atmosphere based on the 1x1 degree global grid.

Strengths

• Provides a continuous time series from 2015 to the present, enabling trend analysis.
• Offers global spatial coverage at a consistent 1x1 degree resolution.
• Integrates data from two sources: EPIC satellite UV channel measurements and MERRA2 reanalysis fields.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Data may reflect geographic or temporal bias inherent to the specific satellite and reanalysis sources.

Provenance

Source

GES DISC (NASA's Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center).

Collection Method

Derived from EPIC satellite UV channel measurements and MERRA2 reanalysis ozone fields.

Time Range

2015 to present.

Freshness

Updated from 2015 to present; specific last update date is unknown.

Geography

Global.