Nimbus-7 LIMS Atmospheric Radiance Profiles from 1978-1979

Nimbus-7 Limb Infrared Monitor of the Stratosphere (LIMS) Level-1 Profiles of Radiance Data contains selected daily vertical profiles of atmospheric radiance across six spectral bands. The dataset provides near-global coverage between latitudes -64 and +84 degrees from 25 October 1978 through 30 May 1979. The experiment's principal investigators were Dr. James M. Russell, III from NASA Langley and Dr. John Gille from NCAR.

Use Cases

• Analyze vertical profiles of radiance in the 15-micrometer CO2 bands to study stratospheric temperature structure.
• Investigate the spatial and temporal distribution of O3 using radiance data from the 9.6-micrometer O3 band.
• Correlate tangent height measurements with radiance in the 6.9-micrometer H2O band to profile water vapor in the upper atmosphere.
• Use the 11.3-micrometer HNO3 and 6.2-micrometer NO2 band profiles for research on reactive nitrogen species in the stratosphere.
• Model atmospheric limb geometry by analyzing radiance profiles obtained every 12 seconds across 14 orbits per day.

Strengths

• Data spans 7 months from October 1978 to May 1979.
• Vertical coverage extends from about 10 km to 50 km (65 km for O3) with 1.5 km resolution.
• Spatial coverage is near-global between latitudes -64 and +84 degrees.
• Profiles contain radiance measurements across six distinct spectral bands.

Limitations

• Data is temporally limited, covering less than one full year.
• The dataset's age (1978-1979) may limit direct comparison with modern atmospheric conditions.
• Specific row counts, file sizes, and data formats are not provided in the description.

Provenance

Source

NASA Nimbus-7 satellite LIMS instrument, processed and archived by the GES DISC.

Collection Method

Derived from the LIMS Level-1 Radiance Archival Tape (RAT) data product, with profiles obtained every 12 seconds per spectral band.

Time Range

1978-10-25 to 1979-05-30

Freshness

1979-05-30

Geography

Near-global coverage between latitude -64 and +84 degrees.