MLS/Aura Daily Binned Hypochlorous Acid (HOCl) Mixing Ratios on Assorted Grids

EOS Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) daily binned data for hypochlorous acid (HOCl) derived from 640 GHz radiometer radiances. Spatial coverage is near-global (-82 to +82 degrees latitude) at a resolution of 4 degrees latitude by 5 degrees longitude, with a recommended vertical range from 10 to 2.15 hPa. The data is archived in netCDF4 format by NASA's GES DISC, with files containing multiple group objects for different orbit and time-of-day profiles.

Use Cases

• Modeling stratospheric chlorine chemistry based on daily binned HOCl mixing ratios.
• Analyzing zonal mean distributions of HOCl across different pressure levels and potential temperature surfaces.
• Studying diurnal variations in HOCl using daytime (SZA < 90) and nighttime (SZA > 110) profile groups.
• Investigating polar vortex dynamics using the vortex average vs potential temperature data groups.

Strengths

• Data provides near-global spatial coverage from -82 to +82 degrees latitude.
• Files contain multiple analysis groups (e.g., zonal means, vortex averages) for different orbit types and times of day.
• Each data group includes statistical fields such as average, min, max, standard deviation, and RMS.

Limitations

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

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Collection Method

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

Time Range

Daily binned data; specific date range is not provided in the input.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 00:04:34.823267; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Near-global coverage from -82 to +82 degrees latitude.