MERRA-2: 3-Hourly Global Atmospheric Carbon Monoxide and Ozone Mixing Ratios

NASA's MERRA-2 reanalysis provides assimilated 3-dimensional data for carbon monoxide and ozone mixing ratios at 72 model layers. The dataset covers the period from 1980 to the present, with data available at 3-hour intervals starting from 00:00 UTC. It is produced by NASA's Global Modeling and Assimilation Office using the GEOS version 5.12.4 model.

Use Cases

• Analyze global atmospheric carbon monoxide transport based on 3-hourly assimilation data.
• Model ozone mixing ratio distribution across 72 vertical model layers.
• Study long-term trends in atmospheric chemistry from 1980 to present.
• Validate satellite-derived air quality measurements using assimilated model-level data.

Strengths

• Data covers a long temporal range from 1980 to present.
• Provides high temporal resolution with 3-hourly instantaneous snapshots.
• Includes vertical detail across 72 distinct model layers.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Assimilated reanalysis produced by NASA Global Modeling and Assimilation Office using the Goddard Earth Observing System Model (GEOS) version 5.12.4.

Time Range

1980-present

Freshness

Updated with a latency of ~3 weeks after the end of a month.

Geography

Global at 0.625 x 0.5 degree resolution