WNA-FLEXPART-BackTraj-2020: Western North American Air Mass Trajectories
Updated 1mo ago
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Available on 2 platforms
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Description
WNA-FLEXPART-BackTraj-2020 is a NASA-generated dataset of 15-day backward air mass trajectories for Western North America, using the FLEXPART dispersion model driven by ERA5 reanalysis. It provides hourly, global simulations at 1° x 1° resolution from the surface to 20 km altitude, designed to establish source-receptor relationships for tropospheric ozone observations from 1994-2021. The dataset supports analysis of source contributions to ozone across diurnal, seasonal, and decadal timescales.
Use Cases
Identifying geographic source regions contributing to high ozone events in Western North America based on the 15-day backward trajectory calculations.
Analyzing seasonal or decadal changes in atmospheric transport patterns affecting ozone levels using the nearly three-decade temporal coverage.
Investigating vertical contributions from different atmospheric layers (surface to 20 km) to downwind ozone observations.
Supporting source contribution analyses for other atmospheric components co-located with the defined ozone receptor sites.
Strengths
Provides high-resolution global simulations with hourly temporal and 1° x 1° spatial resolution.
Covers a long observational period, matching gridded ozone data from 1994 to 2021.
Includes detailed vertical profiling from the surface up to 20 km above ground level.
Limitations
Key metadata such as row count, column names, and exact file size are unspecified across all sources.
Conflicting 'last updated' dates exist between platforms (2026-04-09 on Data.gov vs. 2020-12-31 on NASA Earthdata).
The license is ambiguously listed as 'other-license-specified' without explicit terms.
Provenance
Source
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Collection Method
Simulations using the FLEXible PARTicle (FLEXPART) Lagrangian Particle Dispersion Model, driven by ERA5 reanalysis data.
Time Range
1994-2021
Freshness
2026-04-09 20:39:03.651703
Geography
Global simulations with receptor locations focused on Western North America (WNA).
License is listed as 'other-license-specified'; users must verify specific terms. Data collection is stated as complete.