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Sulfur Dioxide Data Access and Tools

Commonly Used Sulfur Dioxide Data at a Glance

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 ResolutionSpatial CoverageTemporal ResolutionTemporal CoverageSpectral ResolutionSatellite/ PlatformName (Sensor, Model, etc.)Observation, Model, or ReanalysisFile Format
50 km x 50 kmGlobal6 minutes2002-20232,378 infrared channels in the 3.74-15.4 micron spectral rangeAqua*AIRSObservationHDF-EOS
13 km x 24 km, 0.25°, 1°Global98 minutes, Daily2004-present1.0-0.45 nm Full Width and Half Maximum (FWHM)AuraOzone Monitoring Instrument (OMI)ObservationHDF-EOS5
7.5 km x 3 kmGlobal101 minutes, Daily2018250-420 nmNASA/NOAA Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (Suomi NPP)Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite (OMPS)ObservationnetCDF-4
7 x 3.5 km for all spectral bands, with the exception of the UV1 band (7 x 28 km2) and SWIR bands (7 x 7 km2)GlobalDaily2017-present270 nm-2.3 µm, 0.55 nmESA Sentinel-5PTROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI)ObservationnetCDF
165 km x 3 kmNear-global (-82º to +82º latitude)15 minutes,
Twice daily [day, night]		2021-present190 and 240 GHzAura*MLSObservationHDF-EOS5
0.5° x 0.625°GlobalHourly,
3 hourly,
Monthly		1980-presentN/AN/AMERRA-2ReanalysisnetCDF
0.25º x 0.25°Global15 min, HourlyDaily 5-day forecastN/AN/AGEOS-CFModelnetCDF
0.25º x 0.312°Global3-hourlyNear-real time assimilation (DAS), 10-day forecast at 00z, and 5-day forecast at 12zN/AN/AGEOS FPAnalysisnetCDF
Point measurementsGlobalPeriodic flights occurred during each deployment2016-2018variesAirborne Field CampaignAtmospheric Tomography Mission (ATom) campaign with varying instrumentsObservationnetCDF

Sulfur Dioxide Datasets

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Dataset Version Platforms Instruments Temporal Extent Spatial Extent Spatial Resolution Data Format
AIRS/Aqua L2 Standard Physical Retrieval (AIRS+AMSU) V006 (AIRX2RET) at GES DISC 006 Aqua AIRS, AMSU-A 2002-08-30 to 2016-09-24

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

AIRS/Aqua L2 Standard Physical Retrieval (AIRS+AMSU+HSB) V006 (AIRH2RET) at GES DISC 006 Aqua AIRS, AMSU-A, HSB 2002-08-30 to 2003-02-05

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

MLS/Aura Level 2 Diagnostics, Geophysical Parameter Grid V005 (ML2DGG) at GES DISC 005 Aura MLS 2004-08-02 to Present

N: 82 S: -82 E: 180 W: -180

MLS/Aura Level 2 Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) Mixing Ratio V005 (ML2SO2) at GES DISC 005 Aura MLS 2004-08-02 to Present

N: 82 S: -82 E: 180 W: -180

UARS Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) Level 3AL V005 (UARML3AL) at GES DISC 005 UARS MLS 1991-09-18 to 1999-07-27

N: 80 S: -80 E: 180 W: -180

AIRS/Aqua L1B Near Real Time (NRT) Infrared (IR) geolocated and calibrated radiances in BUFR format V005 (AIRIBRAD_NRT_BUFR) at GES DISC 005 Aqua AIRS 2015-12-15 to Present

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

AIRS/Aqua L1B Near Real Time (NRT) Infrared (IR) geolocated and calibrated radiances in BUFR format V005 (AIRIBRAD_NRT_BUFR) at GES DISC 005 Aqua AIRS 2015-12-15 to Present

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

AIRS/Aqua L1B Infrared (IR) geolocated and calibrated radiances V005 (AIRIBRAD) at GES DISC 005 Aqua AIRS 2002-08-30 to Present

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

MLS/Aura Level 3 Monthly Binned Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) Mixing Ratio on Assorted Grids V005 (ML3MBSO2) at GES DISC 005 Aura MLS 2004-08-02 to Present

N: 82 S: -82 E: 180 W: -180

AIRS/Aqua L1B Near Real Time (NRT) Infrared (IR) geolocated and calibrated radiances V005 (AIRIBRAD_NRT) at GES DISC 005 Aqua AIRS 2015-12-15 to Present

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

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Featured Sulfur Dioxide Observation Method: OMPS
The Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite (OMPS) aboard the joint NASA/NOAA Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (Suomi NPP) satellite tracks the health of Earth's ozone layer and measures the concentration of atmospheric ozone. The NOAA-20 and NOAA-21 satellites are also equipped with the instrument. Total column sulfur dioxide data from OMPS are available on a near real-time basis.
Learn More About OMPS
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OMPS Near Real-Time Data

Near real-time Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite (OMPS) data products include total column ozone, total column sulfur dioxide (SO2), vertical ozone profile swath, and aerosol index.

Sulfur Dioxide Data Tools

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