SONEX: Modeled Aircraft Emission Impact on Atmospheric Chemistry

October-November 1997 data from the SONEX and POLINAT-2 campaigns contains model outputs for CO from surface emissions and NOx from aircraft, lightning, and surface pollution at 6 km altitude. The dataset supports analysis of how subsonic aircraft emissions perturb nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, and ozone in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere. It was generated for targeted sampling in the North Atlantic Flight Corridor using aircraft-based in-situ measurements.

Use Cases

• Quantifying the relative contribution of aircraft vs. lightning NOx sources based on the modeled emission categories.
• Validating atmospheric chemistry models of the upper troposphere using campaign-specific meteorological targeting approaches.
• Assessing perturbations to UT/LS ozone budgets from aircraft-emitted NOx, CO, and hydrocarbons described in the mission.

Strengths

• Derived from a focused, international multi-organizational campaign (SONEX/POLINAT-2) with specific flight plans for targeted sampling.
• Contains modeled data for four distinct chemical source categories (CO surface, NOx aircraft, NOx lightning, NOx surface) at a defined altitude (6 km).
• Cross-platform presence on NASA Earthdata and Data.gov signals its importance and ongoing relevance in atmospheric research.

Limitations

• Critical metadata is missing: column names, row counts, and exact file sizes are unknown across all sources.
• Conflicting 'last updated' dates (1997-11-10 vs. 2026-04-09) create uncertainty about data currency and modifications.
• Documentation references specific meteorological analyses and sampling approaches, but the corresponding model data files or parameters are not detailed.

Provenance

Source

NASA/LARC_ASDC, in partnership with German Aerospace Agency (DLR) for POLINAT-2.

Collection Method

Model data generated from the SASS (Subsonics Assessment) Ozone and NOx Experiment (SONEX) suborbital campaign using aircraft-based in-situ measurements.

Time Range

October-November 1997

Freshness

2026-04-09 22:15:52.937200

Geography

North Atlantic Flight Corridor, with primary staging in Bangor, Maine (US) and Shannon, Ireland.