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A Decade of Volcanic Observations from Aura and the A-Train

Aura observations have made many seminal contributions to volcanology. Prior to the Aura launch, satellite observations of volcanic degassing (e.g., from TOMS) were mostly restricted to large eruptions. However, the vast majority of volcanic gases are released during quiescent 'passive' degassing between eruptions. The improved sensitivity of Aura OMI permitted the first daily, space-borne measurements of passive volcanic SO2 degassing, providing improved constraints on the source locations and magnitude of global SO2 emissions for input to atmospheric chemistry and climate models. As a result of this unique sensitivity to volcanic activity, OMI data were also the first satellite SO2 measurements to be routinely used for volcano monitoring at several volcano observatories worldwide. Furthermore, the Aura OMI SO2 data also offer unprecedented sensitivity to volcanic clouds in the UTLS, elucidating the transport, fate and lifetime of volcanic SO2 and providing critical input to aviation hazard mitigation efforts. Another major advance has been the improved vertical resolution of volcanic clouds made possible by synergy between Aura and other A-Train instruments (e.g., AIRS, CALIPSO, CloudSat), advanced UV SO2 altitude retrievals, and inverse trajectory modeling of detailed SO2 cloud maps. This altitude information is crucial for climate models and aviation hazards. We will review some of the highlights of a decade of Aura observations of volcanic activity and look ahead to the future of volcanic observations from space.

Aura↗

Profiling the SO2 Plume from Volcan Turrialba: Ticosonde Balloon Measurements Compared with OMI and OMPS Retrievals

The summit of Volcan Turrialba (elev. 3340 m) lies less than 50 km upstream in the prevailing easterlies from the Ticosonde balloon launch site at San Jose, Costa Rica, where ECC ozone sondes have been launched regularly since 2005. In 2006 we began to see telltale notches in the ozone profiles in the altitude range between 2 and 6 km. Given the proximity of Turrialba, it seemed likely that SO2 in the volcano's plume was interfering in the chemical reaction in the ECC ozone sonde used to detect ozone. In early 2010, fumarolic activity in the Turrialba crater increased strongly, and the profile notches in our soundings increased in frequency as well, consistent with this hypothesis. In February 2012 we tested a dual ECC sonde system, where an additional sonde is flown on the same payload using a selective SO2 filter. The difference of the measurements in the dual sonde is a direct measure of the amount of SO2 encountered. This first dual sonde passed through the plume, and the data indicated a tropospheric SO2 column of 1.4 DU, comparing favorably with a total column of 1.7 DU in the OMI 3-km linear fit (LF) product at the sonde profile location and at nearly the same time. We are now launching dual sondes on a regular basis with 18 launches in the first 12 months through July 2014; 11 of these have detectable SO2 signals. These soundings have great potential for validation of the Aura OMI and the Suomi-NPP OMPS retrievals of SO2. Here we present the sonde measurements and compare them with two satellite datasets: the Aura OMI Linear Fit (LF) product and the Suomi-NPP OMPS Principal Components Analysis (PCA) boundary layer product. The PCA algorithm reduces retrieval noise and artifacts by more accurately accounting for various interferences in SO2 retrievals such as O3 absorption and rotational Raman scattering. The comparisons with the in situ observations indicate a significant improvement of the PCA algorithm in capturing relatively weak volcanic SO2 signals.

sondes↗

Exploring NASA OMI Level 2 Data With Visualization

Satellite data products are important for a wide variety of applications that can bring far-reaching benefits to the science community and the broader society. These benefits can best be achieved if the satellite data are well utilized and interpreted, such as model inputs from satellite, or extreme events (such as volcano eruptions, dust storms,... etc.). Unfortunately, this is not always the case, despite the abundance and relative maturity of numerous satellite data products provided by NASA and other organizations. Such obstacles may be avoided by allowing users to visualize satellite data as "images", with accurate pixel-level (Level-2) information, including pixel coverage area delineation and science team recommended quality screening for individual geophysical parameters. We present a prototype service from the Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC) supporting Aura OMI Level-2 Data with GIS-like capabilities. Functionality includes selecting data sources (e.g., multiple parameters under the same scene, like NO2 and SO2, or the same parameter with different aggregation methods, like NO2 in OMNO2G and OMNO2D products), user-defined area-of-interest and temporal extents, zooming, panning, overlaying, sliding, and data subsetting, reformatting, and reprojection. The system will allow any user-defined portal interface (front-end) to connect to our backend server with OGC standard-compliant Web Mapping Service (WMS) and Web Coverage Service (WCS) calls. This back-end service should greatly enhance its expandability to integrate additional outside data/map sources.

Aura↗

Exploring NASA OMI Level 2 Data With Visualization

Satellite data products are important for a wide variety of applications that can bring far-reaching benefits to the science community and the broader society. These benefits can best be achieved if the satellite data are well utilized and interpreted, such as model inputs from satellite, or extreme events (such as volcano eruptions, dust storms, etc.).Unfortunately, this is not always the case, despite the abundance and relative maturity of numerous satellite data products provided by NASA and other organizations. Such obstacles may be avoided by allowing users to visualize satellite data as images, with accurate pixel-level (Level-2) information, including pixel coverage area delineation and science team recommended quality screening for individual geophysical parameters. We present a prototype service from the Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC) supporting Aura OMI Level-2 Data with GIS-like capabilities. Functionality includes selecting data sources (e.g., multiple parameters under the same scene, like NO2 and SO2, or the same parameter with different aggregation methods, like NO2 in OMNO2G and OMNO2D products), user-defined area-of-interest and temporal extents, zooming, panning, overlaying, sliding, and data subsetting, reformatting, and reprojection. The system will allow any user-defined portal interface (front-end) to connect to our backend server with OGC standard-compliant Web Mapping Service (WMS) and Web Coverage Service (WCS) calls. This back-end service should greatly enhance its expandability to integrate additional outside data-map sources.

Level 2↗

NO2 Total and Tropospheric Vertical Column Densities from OMI on EOS Aura: Update

The Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI), which is on the EOS AURA satellite, retrieves vertical column densities (VCDs) of NO2, along with those of several other trace gases. The relatively high spatial resolution and daily global coverage of the instrument make it particularly well-suited to monitoring tropospheric pollution at scales on the order of 20 km. The OMI NO2 algorithm distinguishes polluted regions from background stratospheric NO2 using a separation algorithm that relies on the smoothly varying stratospheric NO2 and estimations of both stratospheric and tropospheric air mass factors (AMFs). Version 1 of OMI NO2 data has been released for public use. An overview of OMI NO2 data, some recent results and a description of the improvements for version 2 of the algorithm will be presented.

Gleason, J.F.↗

OMI Phase-F Data Preservation

The NASA GES DISC is the primary archive for the Aura OMI products. After 20 years of operations, the OMI instrument is nearing its end and entering Phase-F (closeout). It is time to begin the process of preserving the data, documentation, software and associated information that were produced by the OMI project over its lifetime.

James Johnson↗

A Summary of OMI NO2 Data for Air Quality Applications

As a member of NASA's Air Quality Applied Sciences Team (AQAST), I will update air quality managers on the status of various NASA satellite datasets that are relevant for air quality applications. I will also present a new website that contains NASA Aura OMI nitrogen dioxide data and shows US city trends and comparisons to EPA surface monitor data. Since this is the final AQAST meeting, I will summarize my contributions to AQAST over the last five years.

Air Quality↗

DISCOVER-AQ: An Overview and Initial Comparisons of NO2 with OMI Observations

The first deployment of the Earth Venture -1 DISCOVER-AQ (Deriving Information on Surface conditions from Column and Vertically Resolved Observations Relevant to Air Quality) project was conducted during July 2011 in the Baltimore-Washington region. Two aircraft (a P-3B for in-situ sampling and a King Air for remote sensing) were used along with an extensive array of surface-based in-situ and remote sensing instrumentation. Fourteen flight days were accomplished by both aircraft and over 250 profiles of trace gases and aerosols were performed by the P-3B over surface air quality monitoring stations, which were specially outfitted with sunphotometers and Pandora UV/Vis spectrometers. The King Air flew with the High Spectral Resolution Lidar for aerosols and the ACAM UV/Vis spectrometer for trace gases. This suite of observations allows linkage of surface air quality with the vertical distributions of gases and aerosols, with remotely-sensed column amounts observed from the surface and from the King Air, and with satellite observations from Aura (OMI and TES), GOME-2, MODIS and GOES. The DISCOVER-AQ data will allow determination of under what conditions satellite retrievals are indicative of surface air quality, and they will be useful in planning new satellites. In addition to an overview of the project, a preliminary comparison of tropospheric column NO2 densities from the integration of in-situ P-3B observations, from the Pandoras and ACAM, and from the new Goddard OMI NO2 algorithm will be presented.

Pickering, Kenneth↗

Tropospheric Ozone from Assimilation of Aura Data using Different Definitions of the Tropopause

Ozone data from Aura OMI and MLS instruments were assimilated into the general circulation model (GCM) constrained by assimilated meteorological fields from the Global Modeling and Assimilation Office at NASA Goddard. Properties of tropospheric ozone and their sensitivity to the definition of the tropopause are investigated. Three definitions of the tropopause are considered: (1) dynamical (using potential vorticity and potential temperature), (2) using temperature lapse rate, and (3) using a fixed ozone value. Comparisons of the tropospheric ozone columns using these tropopause definitions will be presented and evaluated against coincident profiles from ozone sondes. Assimilated ozone profiles are used to identify possible tropopause folding events, which are important for stratosphere-troposphere exchange. Each profile is searched for multiple levels at which ozone attains the value typical of the troposphere-stratosphere transition in order to identify possible tropopause folds. Constrained by the dynamics from a global model and by assimilation of Aura ozone data every 3-hours, this data set provides an opportunity to study ozone evolution in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere with high temporal resolution.

Stajner, Ivanka↗

Goddard Atmospheric Composition Data Center: Aura Data and Services in One Place

The Goddard Atmospheric Composition Data and Information Services Center (AC-DISC) is a portal to the Atmospheric Composition specific, user driven, multi-sensor, on-line, easy access archive and distribution system employing data analysis and visualization, data mining, and other user requested techniques for the better science data usage. It provides convenient access to Atmospheric Composition data and information from various remote-sensing missions, from TOMS, UARS, MODIS, and AIRS, to the most recent data from Aura OMI, MLS, HIRDLS (once these datasets are released to the public), as well as Atmospheric Composition datasets residing at other remote archive site.

Leptoukh, G.↗

Exploring and Visualizing A-Train Instrument Data

The succession of US and international satellites that follow each other in close succession, known as the A-Train, affords an opportunity to atmospheric researchers that no single platform could provide: Increasing the number of observations at any given geographic location.. . a more complete "virtual science platform". However, vertically and horizontally, co-registering and regridding datasets from independently developed missions, Aqua, Calipso, Cloudsat, Parasol, and Aura, so that they can be inter-compared can be daunting to some, and may be repeated by many. Scientists will individually spend much of their time and resources acquiring A-Train datasets of interest residing at various locations, developing algorithms to match up and graph datasets along the A-Train track, and search through large amounts of data for areas and/or phenomena of interest. The aggregate amount of effort that can be expended on repeating pre-science tasks could climb into the tens of millions of dollars. The goal of the A-Train Data Depot (ATDD) is to enable free movement of remotely located A-Train data so that they are combined to create a consolidated vertical view of the Earth's Atmosphere along the A-Train tracks. The innovative approach of analyzing and visualizing atmospheric profiles along the platforms track (i.e., time) is accomplished by through the ATDDs Giovanni data analysis and visualization tool. Giovanni brings together data from Aqua (MODIS, AIRS, AMSR-E), Cloudsat (cloud profiling radar) and Calipso (CALIOP, IIR), as well as the Aura (OMI, MLS, HIRDLS, TES) to create a consolidated vertical view of the Earth's Atmosphere along the A-Train tracks. This easy to learn and use exploration tool will allow users to create vertical profiles of any desired A-Train dataset, for any given time of choice. This presentation shows the power of Giovanni by describing and illustrating how this tool facilitates and aids A-Train science and research. A web based display system Giovanni provides users with the capability of creating co-located profile images of temperature and humidity data from the MODIS, MLS and AIRS instruments for a user specified time and spatial area. In addition, Cloud and Aerosol profiles may also be displayed for the Cloudsat and Caliop instruments. The ability to modify horizontal and vertical axis range, data range and dynamic color range is also provided. Two dimensional strip plots of MODIS, AIRS, OM1 and POLDER parameters, co-located along the Cloudsat reference track, can also be plotted along with the Cloudsat cloud profiling data. Center swath pixels for the same parameters can also be shown as line plots overlaying the Cloudsat or Calipso profile images. Images and subsetted data produced in each analysis run may be downloaded. Users truly can explore and discover data specific to their needs prior to ever transferring data to their analysis tools.

Kempler, S.↗

The Multi-Sensor Aerosol Products Sampling System (MAPSS) for Integrated Analysis of Satellite Retrieval Uncertainties

Among the known atmospheric constituents, aerosols represent the greatest uncertainty in climate research. Although satellite-based aerosol retrieval has practically become routine, especially during the last decade, there is often disagreement between similar aerosol parameters retrieved from different sensors, leaving users confused as to which sensors to trust for answering important science questions about the distribution, properties, and impacts of aerosols. As long as there is no consensus and the inconsistencies are not well characterized and understood ', there will be no way of developing reliable climate data records from satellite aerosol measurements. Fortunately, the most globally representative well-calibrated ground-based aerosol measurements corresponding to the satellite-retrieved products are available from the Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET). To adequately utilize the advantages offered by this vital resource,., an online Multi-sensor Aerosol Products Sampling System (MAPSS) was recently developed. The aim of MAPSS is to facilitate detailed comparative analysis of satellite aerosol measurements from different sensors (Terra-MODIS, Aqua-MODIS, Terra-MISR, Aura-OMI, Parasol-POLDER, and Calipso-CALIOP) based on the collocation of these data products over AERONET stations. In this presentation, we will describe the strategy of the MAPSS system, its potential advantages for the aerosol community, and the preliminary results of an integrated comparative uncertainty analysis of aerosol products from multiple satellite sensors.

Ichoku, Charles↗

Toward a Coherent Detailed Evaluation of Aerosol Data Products from Multiple Satellite Sensors

Atmospheric aerosols represent one of the greatest uncertainties in climate research. Although satellite-based aerosol retrieval has practically become routine, especially during the last decade, there is often disagreement between similar aerosol parameters retrieved from different sensors, leaving users confused as to which sensors to trust for answering important science questions about the distribution, properties, and impacts of aerosols. As long as there is no consensus and the inconsistencies are not well characterized and understood, there will be no way of developing reliable climate data records from satellite aerosol measurements. Fortunately, the most globally representative well-calibrated ground-based aerosol measurements corresponding to the satellite-retrieved products are available from the Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET). To adequately utilize the advantages offered by this vital resource, an online Multi-sensor Aerosol Products Sampling System (MAPSS) was recently developed. The aim of MAPSS is to facilitate detailed comparative analysis of satellite aerosol measurements from different sensors (Terra-MODIS, Aqua-MODIS, TerraMISR, Aura-OMI, Parasol-POLDER, and Calipso-CALIOP) based on the collocation of these data products over AERONET stations. In this presentation, we will describe the strategy of the MA~SS system, its potential advantages for the aerosol community, and the preliminary results of an integrated comparative uncertainly analysis of aerosol products from multiple satellite sensors.

Ichoku, Charles↗

Coherent Evaluation of Aerosol Data Products from Multiple Satellite Sensors

Aerosol retrieval from satellite has practically become routine, especially during the last decade. However, there is often disagreement between similar aerosol parameters retrieved from different sensors, thereby leaving users confused as to which sensors to trust for answering important science questions about the distribution, properties, and impacts of aerosols. As long as there is no consensus, and the inconsistencies are not well characterized and understood, there will be no way of developing reliable model inputs and climate data records from satellite aerosol measurements. Fortunately, the Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) is providing well-calibrated globally representative ground-based aerosol measurements corresponding to the satellite-retrieved products. Through a recently developed web-based Multi-sensor Aerosol Products Sampling System (MAPSS), we are utilizing the advantages offered by collocated AERONET and satellite products to characterize and evaluate aerosol retrieval from multiple sensors. Indeed, MAPSS and its companion statistical tool AeroStat are facilitating detailed comparative uncertainty analysis of satellite aerosol measurements from Terra-MODIS, Aqua-MODIS, Terra-MISR, Aura-OMI, Parasol-POLDER, and Calipso-CALIOP. In this presentation, we will describe the strategy of the MAPSS system, its potential advantages for the aerosol community, and the preliminary results of an integrated comparative uncertainly analysis of aerosol products from multiple satellite sensors.

Ichoku, Charles↗

Effects of Data Quality on the Characterization of Aerosol Properties from Multiple Sensors

Cross-comparison of aerosol properties between ground-based and spaceborne measurements is an important validation technique that helps to investigate the uncertainties of aerosol products acquired using spaceborne sensors. However, it has been shown that even minor differences in the cross-characterization procedure may significantly impact the results of such validation. Of particular consideration is the quality assurance I quality control (QA/QC) information - an auxiliary data indicating a "confidence" level (e.g., Bad, Fair, Good, Excellent, etc.) conferred by the retrieval algorithms on the produced data. Depending on the treatment of available QA/QC information, a cross-characterization procedure has the potential of filtering out invalid data points, such as uncertain or erroneous retrievals, which tend to reduce the credibility of such comparisons. However, under certain circumstances, even high QA/QC values may not fully guarantee the quality of the data. For example, retrievals in proximity of a cloud might be particularly perplexing for an aerosol retrieval algorithm, resulting in an invalid data that, nonetheless, could be assigned a high QA/QC confidence. In this presentation, we will study the effects of several QA/QC parameters on cross-characterization of aerosol properties between the data acquired by multiple spaceborne sensors. We will utilize the Multi-sensor Aerosol Products Sampling System (MAPSS) that provides a consistent platform for multi-sensor comparison, including collocation with measurements acquired by the ground-based Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET), The multi-sensor spaceborne data analyzed include those acquired by the Terra-MODIS, Aqua-MODIS, Terra-MISR, Aura-OMI, Parasol-POLDER, and CalipsoCALIOP satellite instruments.

Petrenko, Maksym↗

A 40 Year Time Series of SBUV Observations: the Version 8.6 Processing

Under a NASA program to produce long term data records from instruments on multiple satellites (MEaSUREs), data from a series of eight SBUV and SBUV 12 instruments have been reprocessed to create a 40 year long ozone time series. Data from the Nimbus 4 BUV, Nimbus 7 SBUV, and SBUV/2 instruments on NOAA 9, 11, 14, 16, 17, and 18 were used covering the period 1970 to 1972 and 1979 to the present. In past analyses an ozone time series was created from these instruments by adjusting ozone itself, instrument by instrument, for consistency during overlap periods. In the version 8.6 processing adjustments were made to the radiance calibration of each instrument to maintain a consistent calibration over the entire time series. Data for all eight instruments were then reprocessed using the adjusted radiances. Reprocessing is necessary to produce an accurate latitude dependence. Other improvements incorporated in version 8.6 included the use of the ozone cross sections of Brion, Daumont, and Malicet, and the use of a cloud height climatology derived from Aura OMI measurements. The new cross sections have a more accurate temperature dependence than the cross sections previously used. The OMI-based cloud heights account for the penetration of UV into the upper layers of clouds. The consistency of the version 8.6 time series was evaluated by intra-instrument comparisons during overlap periods, comparisons with ground-based instruments, and comparisons with measurements made by instruments on other satellites such as SAGE II and UARS MLS. These comparisons show that for the instruments on NOAA 16, 17 and 18, the instrument calibrations were remarkably stable and consistent from instrument to instrument. The data record from the Nimbus 7 SBUV was also very stable, and SAGE and ground-based comparisons show that the' calibration was consistent with measurements made years laterby the NOAA 16 instrument. The calibrations of the SBUV/2 instruments on NOAA 9, 11, and 14 were more of a problem. The rapidly drifting orbits of these satellites resulted in relative time and altitude dependent differences that are significant. Despite these problems, total column ozone appears to be consistent to better than 1% over the entire time series, while the ozone vertical distribution is consistent to approximately 5%.

McPeters, Richard↗

Multi-Satellite Synergy for Aerosol Analysis in the Asian Monsoon Region

Atmospheric aerosols represent one of the greatest uncertainties in environmental and climate research, particularly in tropical monsoon regions such as the Southeast Asian regions, where significant contributions from a variety of aerosol sources and types is complicated by unstable atmospheric dynamics. Although aerosols are now routinely retrieved from multiple satellite Sensors, in trying to answer important science questions about aerosol distribution, properties, and impacts, researchers often rely on retrievals from only one or two sensors, thereby running the risk of incurring biases due to sensor/algorithm peculiarities. We are conducting detailed studies of aerosol retrieval uncertainties from various satellite sensors (including Terra-/ Aqua-MODIS, Terra-MISR, Aura-OMI, Parasol-POLDER, SeaWiFS, and Calipso-CALIOP), based on the collocation of these data products over AERONET and other important ground stations, within the online Multi-sensor Aerosol Products Sampling System (MAPSS) framework that was developed recently. Such analyses are aimed at developing a synthesis of results that can be utilized in building reliable unified aerosol information and climate data records from multiple satellite measurements. In this presentation, we will show preliminary results of. an integrated comparative uncertainly analysis of aerosol products from multiple satellite sensors, particularly focused on the Asian Monsoon region, along with some comparisons from the African Monsoon region.

Ichoku, Charles↗

The Version 8.6 SBUV Ozone Data Record: An Overview

Under a NASA program to produce long-term data records from instruments on multiple satellites, data from a series of nine Solar Backscatter Ultraviolet (SBUV and SBUV2) instruments have been re-processed to create a coherent ozone time series. Data from the BUV instrument on Nimbus 4, SBUV on Nimbus 7, and SBUV2 instruments on NOAA 9, 11, 14, 16, 17, 18, and 19 covering the period 1970-1972 and 1979-2011 were used to create a long-term data set. The goal is an ozone Earth Science Data Record - a consistent, calibrated ozone time series that can be used for trend analyses and other studies. In order to create this ozone data set, the radiances were adjusted and used to re-process the entire data records for each of the nine instruments. Inter-instrument comparisons during periods of overlap as well as comparisons with data from other satellite and ground-based instruments were used to evaluate the consistency of the record and make calibration adjustments as needed. Additional improvements in this version 8.6 processing included the use of the Brion, Daumont, and Malicet ozone cross sections, and a cloud-height climatology derived from Aura OMI measurements. Validation of the re-processed ozone shows that total column ozone is consistent with the Brewer Dobson network to within about 1 for the new time series. Comparisons with MLS, SAGE, sondes, and lidar show that ozone at individual levels in the stratosphere is generally consistent to within 5 percent.

ozone↗