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Background

The Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL) is the interface between the Earth’s surface and lowermost 2-3 km atmosphere. Knowing its highly dynamic properties is vital to understand the diurnal, seasonal, and climate-scale variations of Earth’s atmospheric processes and is key to cloud formation and pollution dispersal. Both hyperspectral sounders and Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS)-Radio Occultations (RO) measure atmospheric temperature and moisture. Combining hyperspectral sounder data with GNSS-RO data into a merged global product will advance PBL process science and will improve weather forecasting applications. The 2017 Decadal Survey identified PBL as an Instrument Incubator Program activity that seeks to identify and develop new technology to improve our understanding of the exchanges between the biosphere and the atmosphere, and likewise the air-sea exchanges of chemical and energy fluxes.  The Satellite Needs Working Group (SNWG)-PBL activity will provide a needed low-resolution dataset with current capabilities for requesting agencies as new technical capabilities mature.

Status

This activity is currently in development, with initial data release expected in mid-2026.

Solution Characteristics

PlatformsTemporal FrequencyHorizontal ResolutionGeographic DomainVertical ResolutionLatencyThematic Areas
Aqua, Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere, and Climate-2A (COSMIC-2A) (Equatorial), GeoOptics, Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS)-1, JPSS-2, Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich, Spire, Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (NPP), Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-On (GRACE-FO)Variable (collocations dependent) for Level 2, monthly for Level 315-50 kmGlobal200 mNone required (potential real-time processing possible)Weather and Atmospheric Dynamics

Societal Impact

The PBL solution provides accurate 3D profiles of temperature and water vapor in the 2-3 km of the atmosphere closest to Earth's surface, which are essential for weather and air quality forecasting and a variety of applications such as aviation, communications, and defense operations.

Solution Resources

Need help using this solution? SNWG's Stakeholder Engagement Program (SEP) curates relevant training resources focused on how to access and use SNWG solutions. For each solution, resources are aggregated into the following categories: Fundamentals of Remote Sensing, Missions and Instruments, Data Products and Descriptions, Data Access and Code Examples, and Use Case and Application Examples. The resources below are for the PBL product.

 

Training Resources

TopicResourceDescription
Fundamentals of Remote SensingPassive InstrumentsOverview of passive sensors used for remote sensing of NASA Earth science data, including spectrometers
What is Radio Occultation?A brief video detailing how radio occultation is used for weather forecasting
ARSET - Fundamentals of Remote SensingApplied Remote Sensing Training (ARSET) series of webinar trainings to provide basic information about the fundamentals of remote sensing
TopicResourceDescription
Missions and InstrumentsPlanetary Boundary Layer (PBL)Overview of the Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL) decadal survey
Planetary Boundary Layer IncubationOverview of the NASA PBL Incubation program
The NASA PBL Incubation Study Team Report: Toward A Global Planetary Boundary Layer Observing SystemDetailed report on the targeted observables for the Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL) Incubation program
Spire Global Positioning System Radio Occultation (GPS-RO) & Global Navigation Satellite System Radio Occultation (GNSS-RO)Overview of GPS-RO and GNSS-RO techniques for weather observations by Spire; Spire GNSS-RO data may be used in the merged PBL product suite
TopicResourceDescription
Data Products and DescriptionsMerged GNSS-RO PBL - SNWG Fact SheetSatellite Needs Working Group (SNWG) fact sheet for the PBL product including information such as temporal resolution and spatial coverage

 

No training resources are currently available for this category.

TopicResourceDescription
Use Case and Application ExamplesApplications of Geostationary Hyperspectral Infrared Sounder Observations: Progress, Challenges, and Future PerspectivesOverview of geostationary hyperspectral infrared sounder (GeoHIS) applications, including boundary layer observations
 Estimation of Daytime Planetary Boundary Layer Height (PBLH) over the Tropics and Subtropics Using COSMIC-2/FORMOSAT-7 GNSS-RO MeasurementsUsing Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) Radio Occultation (RO) to estimate Planetary Boundary Layer Height (PBLH)