OCO-2 L2 Met: Satellite-Derived Meteorological Parameters for Carbon Soundings

Version 10r data, corrected for a ~300 m pointing error affecting files from January 28 to December 31, 2020, provides meteorological parameters interpolated from a global assimilation model for each satellite sounding. The dataset supports the Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) mission, NASA's first dedicated to measuring atmospheric carbon dioxide with high-resolution spectrometers at specific near-infrared wavelengths. It characterizes processes influencing CO2 buildup in the atmosphere.

Use Cases

• Characterizing atmospheric transport and mixing processes based on interpolated meteorological parameters for each sounding.
• Validating and improving global carbon flux models using coincident spectrometer measurements of CO2 and O2.
• Assessing the impact of geolocation corrections on carbon data quality, referencing the documented ~300 m AGAP file error.
• Studying seasonal and regional variations in atmospheric carbon dioxide using time-series data from a dedicated satellite mission.

Strengths

• Represents a corrected and authoritative version (10r) of the data, with erroneous files from a specific period (Jan 28–Dec 31, 2020) replaced.
• Data originates from a precision NASA satellite mission (OCO-2) specifically designed for atmospheric CO2 measurement.
• Provides coincident, high-resolution spectrometer measurements at three specific wavelength bands (0.76, 1.61, 2.06 micrometers).

Limitations

• Critical metadata is missing: column names, row counts, and dataset size are not provided on any platform.
• The license is inconsistently specified as 'other-license-specified' or null, requiring further investigation for reuse.
• Last updated dates conflict between sources (2026-04 09 and 2022-03-01), creating uncertainty about data freshness.

Provenance

Source

NASA OCO-2 mission, processed and distributed by the GES DISC.

Collection Method

Satellite remote sensing via the OCO-2 instrument's three spectrometers, with meteorological parameters interpolated from a global assimilation model.

Time Range

Covers at least the period from January 28, 2020, onward, with specific corrections applied for 2020 data.

Freshness

2026-04-09 23:21:22.715570

Geography

Global coverage from satellite observations.