MOP03JM_109: Beta Gridded Monthly Carbon Monoxide from MOPITT Satellite

Ongoing data collection since the MOPITT instrument's launch aboard NASA's Terra spacecraft on December 18, 1999. This dataset provides beta, unvalidated monthly mean-gridded retrievals of carbon monoxide (CO) profiles and total columns in the troposphere, derived from near and thermal infrared radiances. It includes gridded averaging kernels for each retrieval, supporting analysis of atmospheric pollution and chemistry.

Use Cases

• Monitoring long-term trends in global tropospheric carbon monoxide based on monthly mean-gridded data.
• Assimilating satellite-derived CO profiles into atmospheric chemistry models using the provided averaging kernels.
• Validating and calibrating next-generation retrieval algorithms against the beta version 109 product.
• Analyzing spatial patterns of pollution sources and transport using the gridded geospatial data.

Strengths

• Provides a continuous, long-term record from a dedicated satellite instrument launched in 1999.
• Includes averaging kernels, which are critical for proper use of the retrieved profiles in scientific models.
• Dataset is hosted and maintained by authoritative organizations (NASA, Canadian Space Agency).

Limitations

• Data is explicitly labeled as an unvalidated beta product subject to recalibration, limiting its use for definitive conclusions.
• Key metadata such as row count, column details, and exact file sizes are unavailable across all sources.
• There is a conflict in the 'last updated' metadata between platforms (2025-02-01 vs. 2026-04-10).

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA); instrument constructed by a Canadian consortium funded by the Canadian Space Agency.

Collection Method

Satellite remote sensing via the MOPITT instrument aboard the Terra spacecraft, processing daily Level 2 retrievals into gridded monthly means.

Time Range

Ongoing collection since instrument launch on December 18, 1999.

Freshness

Last updated dates conflict: 2026 04 10 (datagov) and 2025 02 01 (nasa_earthdata).

Geography

Global, from a sun-synchronous polar orbit.