SAFARI 2000 Airborne Aerosol and Water Vapor Data from Southern Africa

August 13 to September 25, 2000 data from 24 flights during the SAFARI 2000 dry-season campaign. The NASA Ames Airborne Tracking Sunphotometer (AATS-14) measured direct solar beam transmission at 14 wavelengths (350-1558 nm) from aircraft based in South Africa, Botswana, and Namibia. This dataset provides derived spectral aerosol optical depth, columnar water vapor, and vertical profiles for aerosol extinction and water vapor density.

Use Cases

• Validating satellite-derived aerosol optical depth (AOD) estimates using in-situ spectral measurements from 14 channels.
• Analyzing vertical distribution of aerosols and water vapor density from data collected during aircraft profiles.
• Studying regional atmospheric columnar water vapor (CWV) variability over southern Africa.
• Investigating layer-specific aerosol optical depth by comparing measurements taken at different altitudes over fixed locations.

Strengths

• Contains measurements from 24 dedicated research flights, providing substantial observational coverage.
• Offers multi-wavelength spectral data across 14 discrete channels from 350 to 1558 nm.
• Enables derivation of vertical profiles for aerosol extinction and water vapor density through specific flight maneuvers.

Limitations

• Critical metadata such as row count, file size, and specific column names are unavailable across all platforms.
• A conflict exists in the 'last updated' date: one source lists 2000-09-16, while another lists a future date of 2026-03-12, indicating potential metadata errors.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Collection Method

Data gathered via the NASA Ames Airborne Tracking 14-channel Sunphotometer (AATS-14) instrument aboard the University of Washington CV-580 aircraft.

Time Range

2000-08 13 to 2000-09-25

Freshness

2000-09-16 23:59:59.999000

Geography

Flights originated from Pietersburg, South Africa; Kasane, Botswana; and Walvis Bay, Namibia, covering parts of southern Africa.