HIRDLS/Aura Level 3 Extinction at 8.3 Microns Zonal Fourier Coefficients

The HIRDLS/Aura Level 3 Extinction at 8.3 Microns Zonal Fourier Coefficients dataset contains the entire mission (~3 years) of HIRDLS data expressed as zonal Fourier coefficients. It provides data in 1 degree latitude bands from -64 to 80 degrees at 121 pressure levels, with a vertical resolution of about 1 km. The data product is version 7 and was produced by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Use Cases

• Modeling atmospheric aerosol distribution based on zonal Fourier coefficients.
• Analyzing aerosol extinction patterns at 8.3 microns wavelength across latitude bands.
• Studying diurnal variations in aerosols using separate ascending (daytime) and descending (nighttime) orbit node data.
• Investigating vertical aerosol profiles across 121 pressure levels from 215 to 20 hPa.

Strengths

• Provides data for the entire mission (~3 years) of the HIRDLS instrument.
• Offers high vertical resolution with 121 pressure levels, corresponding to about 1 km.
• Includes separate data fields for ascending (daytime), descending (nighttime), and combined orbit nodes.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• The useful vertical range is limited to 215 to 20 hPa.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Coefficients computed from HIRDLS Level 2 profiles with a Kalman filter approach using both forward and backward passes in time.

Time Range

The entire mission (~3 years) of HIRDLS data.

Geography

Zonal data in 1 degree latitude bands from -64 to 80 degrees.