From discovery to visualization, data tools such as the MOPITT Search and Subsetting Web Application, NASA’s Air Quality and Climate Anomaly Viewer, and the Wisconsin Horizontal Interpolation Program for Satellites (WHIPS) guide users in making the most of atmospheric carbon monoxide data.
Atmospheric Carbon Monoxide Data Access and Tools
Commonly Used Carbon Monoxide Data at a Glance
Descriptions of these measurements will be reviewed in more detail later in this Data Pathfinder. The following sections will help guide you to topic-specific data and resources for accessing, visualizing, preparing/manipulating (e.g. subsetting), and analyzing data. Each observation, model, and reanalysis data has unique characteristics that should be considered when evaluating its use.
An asterisk (*) next to an entry indicates that near real-time (NRT) data products are available through NASA's Land, Atmosphere Near real-time Capability for EOS (LANCE). While not intended for scientific research, NRT data are good resources for monitoring ongoing or time-critical events. To learn more about the difference between NRT and Standard Science Products, see Near Real Time versus Standard Products.
| Spatial Resolution | Spatial Coverage | Temporal Resolution | Temporal Coverage | Spectral Resolution | Satellite/ Platform | Name (Sensor, Model, etc.) | Observation, Model, or Reanalysis | File Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 km x 50 km | Global | 6 minutes | 2002-present | 2,378 infrared channels in the 3.74-15.4 micron spectral range | Aqua | *AIRS | Observation | HDF-EOS |
| 165 km x 3 km | Near-global | Twice daily [day, night] | 2004-present | At millimeter and submillimeter wavelengths | Aqua | *MLS | Observation | HDF-EOS5 |
| ~22 km | Global | Daily, Monthly | 2000-present | near-infrared radiation at 2.3 µm and thermal-infrared radiation at 4.7 µm | Terra | *MOPITT | Observation | HDF-EOS5 |
| 5.5 km x 7 km | Global | 101.5 minutes | 2018-present | 270 nm-2.3 µm, 0.55 nm | Sentinel-5P | TROPOMI | Observation | netCDF |
| 0.25º x 0.25° | Global | 15 min, Hourly | Daily 5-day forecast | N/A | N/A | GEOS-CF | Model | netCDF |
| 0.25º x 0.312° | Global | 3-hourly | Near-real time assimilation (DAS), 10-day forecast at 00z and 5-day forecast at 12z | N/A | N/A | GEOS FP | Analysis | netCDF |
| Point measurements | Global | Periodic flights occurred during each deployment | 2016-2018 | varies | Airborne Field Campaign | Atmospheric Tomography Mission (ATom) campaign with varying instruments | Observation | netCDF |
Atmospheric Carbon Monoxide Datasets
| Dataset Sort descending | Version | Platform | Instrument | Temporal Extent | Spatial Extent | Spatial Resolution | Data Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABLE-2A Electra In-Situ Trace Gas Data | 1 | NASA ELECTRA | CHEMILUMINESCENCE, INFRARED LASER SPECTROSCOPY | 1985-07-11 to 1985-08-15 |
N: 37.1 S: -7.2 E: -47.48 W: -76.3 |
GTE | |
| ABLE-2B Merge Data | 1 | Data Analysis, NASA ELECTRA | NOT APPLICABLE | 1987-04-01 to 1987-05-15 |
N: 37.54 S: -84.1 E: -31.29 W: -81.47 |
GTE | |
| ABLE-3A Electra Meteorological and Navigational Data | 1 | NASA ELECTRA | TAMMS | 1988-07-07 to 1988-08-18 |
N: 83.332 S: 37.082 E: -55.443 W: -168.402 |
GTE, JPEG | |
| ABLE-3B Electra In-Situ Trace Gas Data | 1 | NASA ELECTRA | GRAB SAMPLERS, GAS CHROMATOGRAPHS, LIF-NO, DACOM | 1990-06-11 to 1990-08-18 |
N: 63.748 S: 37.053 E: -49.4 W: -106.178 |
GTE | |
| ABoVE: Atmospheric Gas Concentrations from Airborne Flasks, Arctic-CAP, 2017 | 1 | LABORATORY, Airplane | GAS CHROMATOGRAPHS, FLAME-IONIZATION DETECTOR, FLUORESCENCE SPECTROSCOPY, FLASKS | 2017-04-27 to 2017-11-04 |
N: 71.2712 S: 58.0838 E: -111.572 W: -165.48 |
CSV | |
| ABoVE: Atmospheric Profiles of CO, CO2 and CH4 Concentrations from Arctic-CAP, 2017 | 1 | NASA DC-8 | PICARRO G2401-mc CO2, CH4, CO, H2O INSTRUMENT, HUMIDITY SENSORS, WIND MONITOR | 2017-04-26 to 2017-11-05 |
N: 71.2874 S: 40.0387 E: -104.112 W: -166.045 |
netCDF-4 | |
| ACCLIP WB-57 Aircraft In-situ Trace Gas Data | 1 | NASA WB-57F | ACOS, COMA, LIF-NO, LIF-SO2, ISAF, COLD 2, UASO3 | 2022-07-14 to 2022-09-14 | ICARTT | ||
| ACCLIP WB-57 Aircraft Merge Data | 1 | NASA WB-57F | Computer | 2022-07-16 to 2022-09-14 |
N: 61.5 S: 16.6 E: 180 W: -180 |
ICARTT | |
| ACCLIP WB-57 Aircraft Model Data | 1 | GEOS, NASA WB-57F | Computer, MMS | 2022-07-14 to 2022-09-14 | ICARTT | ||
| ACT-America: L1 Raw, Uncalibrated In-Situ CO2, CO, and CH4 Mole Fractions from Towers | 1 | FIXED OBSERVATION STATIONS | SPECTROMETERS | 2015-01-01 to 2019-12-31 |
N: 44.0502 S: 30.1951 E: -76.4188 W: -98.588 |
netCDF-4 classic | |
| ACT-America: L2 In Situ Atmospheric CO2, CO, CH4, and O3 Concentrations, Eastern USA | 1.2 | B-200, C-130 | PICARRO G2401-mc CO2, CH4, CO, H2O INSTRUMENT, UV OZONE DETECTORS | 2016-07-11 to 2019-07-27 |
N: 50.5498 S: 25 E: -70 W: -110 |
multiple | |
| ACT-America: L2 In Situ Atmospheric Gas Concentrations from Flasks, Eastern USA | 1.2 | B-200, C-130 | FLASKS | 2016-05-27 to 2019-07-27 |
N: 49.4031 S: 27.7853 E: -72.9424 W: -105.887 |
multiple | |
| ACT-America: L2 In Situ CO2, CO, and CH4 Concentrations from Towers, Eastern USA | 1.1 | FIXED OBSERVATION STATIONS | SPECTROMETERS | 2015-01-01 to 2017-12-31 |
N: 44.0502 S: 30.1951 E: -76.4188 W: -98.588 |
multiple | |
| ACT-America: L3 Merged In Situ Atmospheric Trace Gases and Flask Data, Eastern USA | 1.2 | C-130, B-200 | CPL, FLASKS, PICARRO L2130-i Flight Ready Water Vapor Isotopic Analyzer, OMI, PICARRO G2401-mc CO2, CH4, CO, H2O INSTRUMENT, CAMS | 2016-07-11 to 2019-07-27 |
N: 50.5498 S: 27.2303 E: -72.6616 W: -106.494 |
multiple | |
| ACTIVATE Falcon In Situ Trace Gas Data | 1 | HU-25A | GAS SENSORS, CRDS | 2020-02-14 to 2022-06-30 | ICARTT | ||
| ACTIVATE Supplementary Model Data | 1 | MERRA-2 | Computer | 2020-02-14 to 2022-06-30 | ICARTT | ||
| ARCSIX P-3B In-Situ Trace Gas Data | 1 | P-3B | PICARRO G2401-mc CO2, CH4, CO, H2O INSTRUMENT, 2B Technologies | 2024-05-17 to 2024-08-18 |
N: 86.06 S: 37.68 E: -8.32 W: -105.18 |
ICARTT | |
| ARCTAS DC-8 Aircraft In-situ Trace Gas Data | 1 | NASA DC-8 | TOGA, GAS CHROMATOGRAPHS, ATHOS, HOxCIMS, TD-LIF, DACOM, DIAL, CIMS, FLUORESCENCE SPECTROSCOPY, NDIR GAS ANALYZER, NOxyO3, PTR-MS | 2008-03-18 to 2008-07-14 | ICARTT | ||
| ARCTAS DC-8 Aircraft Merge Data | 1 | NASA DC-8 | Computer | 2008-03-30 to 2008-07-15 | ICARTT | ||
| ARCTAS Model Data | 1 | CLIMATE MODELS, GEOS-5, GEOS-Chem | Computer | 2008-03-30 to 2008-07-14 | netCDF-3, ICARTT | ||
| ARCTAS P-3B Aircraft In-situ Trace Gas Data | 1 | P-3B | COBALT | 2008-03-23 to 2008-07-14 | ICARTT | ||
| ARCTAS Supplementary Satellite Data Products | 1 | Aura, Terra | TES, OMI, MOPITT | 2008-03-01 to 2008-07-31 | HDF4, HDF5, ICARTT | ||
| ASHOE/MAESA ER-2 Aircraft In-Situ Trace Gas Data | 1 | NASA ER-2 | Harvard CO2, ACATS, NOAA O3 Classic, ATLAS, ClO/BrO, ALIAS, HOx | 1994-01-21 to 1994-11-06 |
N: 73.14 S: -80.05 E: 180 W: -180 |
AMES | |
| ASIA-AQ DC-8 In-Situ Trace Gas Data | 1 | NASA DC-8 | TOGA, WAS, QC-TILDAS, CIT-ToF-CIMS, DACOM, CHEMILUMINESCENCE, LGR, ACES, CANOE, ROZE, PTR-MS, ISAF, LI-7000, MIRO MGA, OPALS | 2024-01-23 to 2024-04-02 |
N: 61.37 S: 12.46 E: 180 W: -180 |
ICARTT | |
| ATMOS L2 Trace Gases on Altitude Grid, Fixed Field Format V3 (ATMOSL2AF) at GES DISC | 3 | Spacelab-3, ATLAS-1, ATLAS-2, ATLAS-3 | ATMOS | 1985-04-30 to 1985-05-01, 1992-03-25 to 1992-04-02, 1993-04-08 to 1993-04-16, 1994-11-03 to 1994-11-12 |
N: 75 S: -73 E: 180 W: -180 |
Featured Atmospheric Carbon Monoxide Observation Method: MOPITT
The Measurement of Pollution in the Troposphere (MOPITT) instrument aboard NASA's Terra satellite is designed to enhance our knowledge of the lower atmosphere and observe how it interacts with the land and ocean biospheres. MOPITT’s specific focus is on the distribution, transport, sources, and sinks of carbon monoxide in the troposphere.
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