MERRA-2 M2T1NXSLV: Hourly Global Atmospheric Diagnostics

MERRA-2 M2T1NXSLV is an hourly time-averaged 2-dimensional data collection from NASA's Global Modeling and Assimilation Office. It contains meteorology diagnostics at popular vertical levels, including air temperature, wind components, sea level pressure, and precipitable water vapor. The dataset covers the period from 1980 to the present, produced using the Goddard Earth Observing System Model version 5.12.4.

Use Cases

• Analyze long-term climate trends based on the 1980-present time coverage
• Model surface weather conditions based on air temperature at 2-meter and 10-meter levels
• Study atmospheric dynamics based on wind components at various vertical levels
• Calculate hydrological variables based on total precipitable water vapor data
• Validate satellite-era atmospheric models based on the assimilation reanalysis methodology

Strengths

• Data covers a long temporal range from 1980 to the present
• Provides hourly time-averaged diagnostics at multiple vertical levels mentioned in the description
• Produced by NASA's Global Modeling and Assimilation Office (GMAO), a recognized authority

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment
• Data has a latency of ~3 weeks after the end of a month

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Assimilation reanalysis produced using the Goddard Earth Observing System Model (GEOS) version 5.12.4.

Time Range

1980-present

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 00:52:15.443949; freshness should be verified

Geography

Global