TRPSDL2HDOAIRSFS: Global Deuterated Water Vapor Profiles from AIRS-Aqua

17 vertical levels of deuterated water vapor (HDO) profiles are retrieved daily from the AIRS instrument on NASA's Aqua satellite. This standard product uses the MUSES optimal estimation algorithm to provide global data at a 13.5 km spatial resolution from February 2021 onward. The dataset includes formal uncertainties and diagnostic information for each profile.

Use Cases

• Analyzing the isotopic signature of water vapor for hydrological cycle studies based on HDO profiles.
• Validating atmospheric chemistry and transport models using the 17-level vertical distribution data.
• Investigating tropospheric moisture sources and processes based on global, daily satellite retrievals.
• Assessing formal retrieval uncertainties for data assimilation or error analysis.

Strengths

• Provides a continuous global time series from February 1, 2021, to the present.
• Offers high vertical resolution with data reported at 17 distinct pressure levels from the surface to 0.1 hPa.
• Uses a sophisticated, documented retrieval algorithm (MUSES) that provides formal uncertainty estimates.
• Has a well-defined spatial resolution of 13.5 km at the satellite's nadir field of view.

Limitations

• Key metadata such as row count, file size, and specific column names are not provided on any platform.
• The license is ambiguously listed as 'other-license-specified' without explicit terms.
• Data is stored in netCDF format, which may require specialized software or libraries for analysis.

Provenance

Source

NASA TROPESS project, Principal Investigator Kevin W. Bowman, data processed by GES DISC.

Collection Method

Retrieved via optimal estimation (MUSES algorithm) from radiances measured by the AIRS instrument on the EOS Aqua satellite.

Time Range

2021-02-01 to present

Freshness

2026-04-09 21:26:36.812386

Geography

Global