Aura Satellite Daily Zonal Carbon Monoxide Mixing Ratios

Daily binned carbon monoxide mixing ratio data derived from the Aura satellite's Microwave Limb Sounder. The dataset provides near-global coverage from August 2004 onward, with measurements at 4-degree latitude increments. It is produced by NASA's Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC) using version 4.2 processing.

Use Cases

• Analyze lat vs pressure zonal mean CO averages to study the global vertical distribution of carbon monoxide.
• Use the lat vs potential temperature zonal mean data to investigate CO transport in isentropic coordinates.
• Examine equivalent latitude vs potential temperature zonal means for research on stratospheric polar vortex dynamics.
• Track temporal trends in vortex average vs potential temperature data for long-term atmospheric composition studies.
• Utilize the provided standard deviation and RMS fields within each data group to assess measurement uncertainty and variability.

Strengths

• Continuous daily data record spanning from August 2004 to the present.
• Near-global spatial coverage from -82 to +82 degrees latitude.
• Recommended useful vertical range spans from 215 hPa to 0.00464 hPa with approximately 6 km resolution.
• Data is structured into four distinct group objects (e.g., lat vs pressure) each containing statistical fields like average, min, max, and standard deviation.

Limitations

• Specific row and column counts, sample size, and file sizes are not provided in the description.
• The vertical resolution of about 6 km may be coarse for studying fine-scale atmospheric processes.
• Data format is netCDF4/HDF5, which requires specialized libraries or tools for access and analysis.

Provenance

Source

NASA Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC).

Collection Method

Derived from radiances measured by the 640 GHz radiometer on the EOS Aura satellite's Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS).

Time Range

August 2, 2004 to current.

Freshness

Data coverage is from August 2004 to current, indicating ongoing updates.

Geography

Near-global, from -82 to +82 degrees latitude at 4-degree zonal increments.