TransCom 3: Seasonal CO2 Flux Estimates from Atmospheric Inversions

TransCom 3 Level 2 data provides model outputs and seasonal mean carbon dioxide fluxes from a multi-model atmospheric inversion intercomparison. The dataset contains results from 12 different atmospheric tracer transport models, which inverted mean CO2 concentration data from 75 GLOBALVIEW sites for the period 1990-1996. It includes input data, model outputs, estimated monthly fluxes for an average year (1992-1996 mean), the inversion code, and a basis function map.

Use Cases

• Benchmarking atmospheric transport model performance based on the intercomparison of 12 models.
• Analyzing spatial and temporal patterns of residual CO2 sources and sinks from the estimated monthly fluxes.
• Validating other carbon flux estimates against the model ensemble results for the 1992-1996 period.
• Studying the relationship between atmospheric SF6 tracers and CO2 using the included tracer simulations.

Strengths

• Results from a formal intercomparison of 12 different atmospheric tracer transport models.
• Based on observational data from 75 distinct atmospheric monitoring sites.
• Includes both the final estimated fluxes and the underlying model code and input data.

Limitations

• Metadata completeness is low: column names, row counts, and specific data formats are not described.
• Conflicting freshness signals: one platform lists a 2026 update date, while another indicates the underlying data is from 1996.
• The temporal coverage is for a historical period (1990-1996), limiting analysis of recent trends.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), from the TransCom 3 (Atmospheric Carbon Cycle Inversion Intercomparison) project.

Collection Method

Atmospheric inverse modeling, using the GLOBALVIEW-CO2 2000 observational dataset and 12 atmospheric transport models.

Time Range

1990 to 1996, with estimated fluxes representing the average of 1992-1996.

Freshness

Last updated date conflicts: 2026-04-09 (datagov) vs. 1996-12 31 (nasa_earthdata).

Geography

Global, based on 75 atmospheric monitoring sites.