MLS/Aura Level 3: Daily Binned Ozone Mixing Ratio on Global Grids

MLS/Aura Level 3 Daily Binned Ozone (O3) Mixing Ratio data derived from radiances measured by the 240 GHz radiometer on the EOS Aura satellite. The data version is 4.2, providing near-global spatial coverage from -82 to +82 degrees latitude at a resolution of 4 degrees latitude by 5 degrees longitude. It is produced by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and archived in netCDF4 format.

Use Cases

• Analyzing global ozone distribution patterns based on daily binned data on latitude-longitude grids.
• Studying vertical ozone profiles across pressure levels from 261 to 0.0215 hPa.
• Comparing daytime and nighttime ozone measurements based on solar zenith angle (SZA) subsets.
• Investigating zonal mean and vortex average ozone behavior based on the six group objects in each file.

Strengths

• Data provides near-global spatial coverage from -82 to +82 degrees latitude.
• Vertical resolution is between 2.5 and 6 km across the recommended useful range.
• Files contain multiple analysis groups (e.g., zonal mean, vortex average) and orbit subsets (ascending, descending, day, night).

Limitations

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

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Derived from radiances measured by the Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) 240 GHz radiometer on the EOS Aura satellite.

Time Range

Daily binned data; specific temporal coverage is not stated in the provided description.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03 13 00:03:28.327369; freshness should be verified.

Geography

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