MERRA-2 Monthly Diurnal Moist Tendencies on 42 Pressure Levels

MERRA-2 tavgU_3d_qdt_Np provides 3-dimensional monthly diurnal mean assimilations of moist tendencies on 42 pressure levels. The dataset is produced by NASA's Global Modeling and Assimilation Office using the GEOS 5.12.4 model. It covers the period from 1980 to the present, with data updated approximately three weeks after each month ends.

Use Cases

• Analyze the tendency of ice water due to dynamics to study cloud microphysics and precipitation processes.
• Model total specific humidity analysis tendency for atmospheric moisture budget assessments.
• Investigate specific humidity tendency due to moist processes to understand evaporation and condensation cycles.
• Compare total ice water tendency due to moist across 42 pressure levels for vertical profile analysis.

Strengths

• Covers a long-term period from 1980 to present, enabling climate trend analysis.
• Provides data on 42 distinct pressure levels for detailed vertical atmospheric profiling.
• Offers monthly diurnal means at 3-hour intervals (e.g., 01:30, 04:30 UTC) for temporal pattern analysis.

Limitations

• Specific row count, file size, and spatial resolution details beyond '0.625 x 0.5 degree' are not provided.
• Data has a latency of approximately three weeks, limiting real-time applications.
• Potential for reprocessing changes, requiring users to verify file versions.

Provenance

Source

NASA Global Modeling and Assimilation Office (GMAO) via the GES DISC.

Collection Method

Generated by the Goddard Earth Observing System Model (GEOS) version 5.12.4 for atmospheric reanalysis.

Time Range

1980 to present.

Freshness

Updated monthly with a ~3 week latency.

Geography

Global coverage at 0.625 x 0.5 degree resolution.