LBA-ECO CD-03: Nocturnal Atmospheric Profiles from Brazilian Forest and Pasture
Updated 1mo ago
6filesBIN
Available on 2 platforms
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Description
Santarem, Para, Brazil, is the location for this dataset of nocturnal meteorological profiles collected via tethered balloon in July and October 2001 and November 2003. The data, which includes air temperature, wind speed and direction, and specific humidity (with CO2 added in 2003), captures the development of the convective boundary layer from sunset to sunrise. Profiles were taken hourly at night, with intensive shallow soundings at dawn, reaching altitudes of 300-400 meters.
Use Cases
Analyzing nocturnal boundary layer evolution based on hourly vertical profiles.
Comparing atmospheric conditions between forest and pasture sites using paired tower data.
Studying pre-dawn convective boundary layer (CBL) development from intensive shallow soundings.
Investigating near-surface CO2 concentration gradients from the 2003 campaign data.
Strengths
Data collection spans three distinct field campaigns over multiple years (2001, 2003).
Includes detailed methodological specifics (balloon ascent rates, 10-second sampling interval).
Designed for direct comparison with tower data from nearby sites.
Cross-platform presence (Data.gov, NASA Earthdata) signals recognized importance.
Limitations
Column names and exact row counts are not provided in any source.
Conflicting 'last updated' dates (2003 vs. 2026) create uncertainty about metadata freshness.
Data format is limited to three comma-delimited ASCII files, suggesting a simple, non-standardized structure.
Provenance
Source
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
Collection Method
Measurements collected from tethered balloon platforms with specified ascent and sampling rates.
Time Range
July 2001, October 2001, November 2003.
Freshness
Last updated dates conflict: 2003-11-26 on NASA Earthdata vs. 2026-04-10 on Data.gov.
Geography
Near Santarem, Para, Brazil: pasture/agricultural tower site at km 77 on BR-163 and Tapajos National Forest km 83 tower site.
License is listed as 'other-license-specified' on Data.gov; specific terms are not provided.