MERRA-2: Monthly Diurnal Wind Tendencies on 42 Pressure Levels

42 pressure levels contain assimilated wind tendencies, including total eastward/northward wind analysis tendency and tendencies due to dynamics and turbulence. This collection is the monthly mean of 3-hourly data fields timestamped at central times like 01:30 UTC, produced by NASA's Global Modeling and Assimilation Office (GMAO). The dataset covers the period from 1980 to the present with a latency of approximately three weeks after the end of each month.

Use Cases

• Analyze diurnal wind patterns based on 3-hourly time-stamped monthly means
• Model atmospheric dynamics based on assimilated wind tendencies due to dynamics
• Study turbulence effects on wind based on tendencies due to turbulence
• Validate reanalysis models based on total eastward/northward wind analysis tendency

Strengths

• 42 distinct pressure levels provide vertical atmospheric resolution
• Continuous temporal coverage from 1980 to present enables long-term trend analysis
• Data is produced by NASA's GMAO using the GEOS 5.12.4 model, indicating authoritative source

Limitations

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

Provenance

Source

NASA Global Modeling and Assimilation Office (GMAO)

Collection Method

Assimilated reanalysis produced 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; last metadata update was 2026-03-13.

Geography

Global coverage at 0.625 x 0.5 degree resolution