Monthly Binned Atmospheric Temperature Profiles from Aura Satellite

MLS/Aura Level 3 Monthly Binned Temperature data provides near-global atmospheric temperature profiles derived from Microwave Limb Sounder radiances. The dataset offers spatial coverage from -82 to +82 degrees latitude at 4x5 degree resolution across a vertical pressure range from 261 to 0.001 hPa. It is produced by the GES DISC organization using version 4.2 of the EOS MLS processing algorithm.

Use Cases

• Analyzing lat-lon map vs pressure group data to study spatial patterns of monthly average temperature anomalies.
• Using lat vs pressure zonal mean data to compute and visualize meridional (north-south) temperature gradients.
• Investigating vortex dynamics by examining the vortex average vs theta group for polar region studies.
• Calculating atmospheric stability metrics from the lat-lon map vs theta (potential temperature) data fields.
• Assessing data uncertainty for trend analysis using the standard deviation and RMS fields within each data group.

Strengths

• Near-global spatial coverage from -82 to +82 degrees latitude.
• Data provided across a wide vertical range from 261 to 0.001 hPa pressure.
• Includes multiple statistical fields per grid: average, min, max, standard deviation, and RMS.
• Data is structured in six distinct group objects for different analysis perspectives (e.g., zonal mean, vortex average).

Limitations

• Specific row count, file size, and total temporal coverage are unknown from the provided description.
• Spatial resolution is limited to 4 degrees latitude by 5 degrees longitude, which may be coarse for regional studies.
• The recommended useful vertical range suggests data quality may vary outside the 261-0.001 hPa pressure levels.

Provenance

Source

GES_DISC (Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center).

Collection Method

Derived from radiances measured by the 118 and 240 GHz radiometers on the EOS Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS).

Time Range

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Freshness

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Geography

Near-global, -82 to +82 degrees latitude.