TOVSAMND: NOAA-12 Satellite Atmospheric Profiles and Surface Parameters

TOVSAMND contains TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) level 3 geophysical parameters derived from NOAA-12 satellite data using the Path A physical retrieval method. The dataset provides global fields of atmospheric temperature, moisture, surface temperature, cloud properties, ozone, and precipitation. Data is processed by the Goddard Laboratory for Atmospheres at NASA/GSFC and is available in daily, pentad, and monthly averages.

Use Cases

• Modeling 3D atmospheric temperature and moisture profiles based on HIRS2/MSU satellite soundings
• Estimating global land and sea surface temperature from satellite-derived geophysical parameters
• Analyzing cloud fraction and cloudtop height for climate studies
• Monitoring total ozone overburden and precipitation estimates on a global scale

Strengths

• Derived from 20-channel HIRS2 and 4-channel MSU instruments on NOAA-12, providing multi-spectral observations
• Data is assimilated with in-situ measurements like radiosondes using an Optimal Interpolation scheme
• Available in three temporal aggregations: daily, 5-day (pentad), and monthly

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment
• The retrieval method is dependent on a hydrodynamic model and a priori data

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Goddard Laboratory for Atmospheres

Collection Method

Physical retrieval from NOAA-12 satellite HIRS2/MSU data, assimilated with in-situ measurements via an Optimal Interpolation analysis cycle.

Time Range

Temporal coverage includes daily, pentad, and monthly periods; specific date range is not provided.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 20:28:33.805158; freshness should be verified

Geography

Global spatial coverage.