SAGE III/ISS: Atmospheric Profiles from Solar and Lunar Occultation

Launched on February 19, 2017, the SAGE III/ISS instrument uses solar and lunar occultation to monitor Earth's atmosphere. The dataset provides vertical profiles of ozone, aerosols, nitrogen dioxide, water vapor, and other trace gases in the stratosphere and mesosphere. These observations are used for long-term studies of atmospheric composition and ozone depletion.

Use Cases

• Monitoring long-term ozone vertical profiles to assess stratospheric ozone depletion and recovery.
• Studying the distribution and variability of aerosols, nitrogen dioxide, and water vapor in the upper atmosphere.
• Analyzing atmospheric pressure and temperature profiles derived from occultation measurements.
• Validating climate and atmospheric chemistry models with high-vertical-resolution trace gas data.

Strengths

• Data is produced by a NASA instrument (SAGE III/ISS) launched in 2017, providing a modern continuation of a long-term observational record.
• Version 6.0 data includes improvements such as filling transmission gaps, leading to several hundred more events than previous versions.
• The dataset is used by authoritative bodies like the World Meteorological Organization for official ozone depletion assessments.

Limitations

• Specific data quality warnings exist; events from March 9, 2024 (2024030913SS, 2024030915SS, 2024030917SS) are affected by line-of-sight blockage and should not be used.
• Column names and detailed schema are not provided in any source, limiting immediate understanding of the data structure.
• Metadata completeness is low; file sizes, row counts, and specific license terms are not specified.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Collection Method

Collected via the SAGE III/ISS instrument using solar and lunar occultation techniques.

Time Range

From February 2017 (instrument launch) to present.

Freshness

2026-04-09 (based on the most recent 'last updated' date from datagov)

Geography

Global coverage, from the Earth's limb as observed from the International Space Station.