STAQS_Sondes_Data is the balloonsonde and ozonesonde data collected during the Synergistic TEMPO Air Quality Science (STAQS) mission. Data collection for this product is complete. Launched in April 2023, NASA’s Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) satellite monitors major air pollutants across North America every daylight hour at high spatial resolution at a geostationary orbit (GEO). With these measurements, NASA’s STAQS mission seeks to integrate TEMPO satellite observations with traditional air quality monitoring to improve understanding of air quality science and enhance societal benefit. STAQS is being conducted during summer 2023, targeting urban areas, including Los Angeles, New York City, and Chicago. As part of the mission two aircraft will be outfitted with various remote sensing payloads. The Johnson Space Center (JSC) Gulfstream-V (G-V) aircraft will feature the GeoCAPE Airborne Simulator (GCAS) and combined High Spectral Resolution Lidar-2 (HSRL-2) and Ozone Differential Absorption Lidar (DIAL). This payload provides repeated high-resolution mapping of NO2, HCHO, ozone, and aerosols up to 3x per day over targeted cities. NASA Langley Research Center’s (LaRC’s) Gulfstream-III will measure city-scale emissions 2x per day over the targeted cities with the High-Altitude Lidar Observatory (HALO) and Airborne Visible InfraRed Imaging Spectrometer – Next Generation (AVIRS-NG). STAQS will also incorporate ground-based tropospheric ozone profiles from the NASA Tropospheric Ozone Lidar Network (TOLNet), NO2, HCHO, and ozone measurements from Pandora spectrometers, and will leverage existing networks operated by the EPA and state air quality agencies. The primary goal of STAQS is to improve our current understanding of air quality science under the TEMPO field of regard. Further goals include evaluating TEMPO level 2 data products, interpreting the temporal and spatial evolution of air quality events tracked by TEMPO, improving temporal estimates of anthropogenic, biogenic, and greenhouse gas emissions, assessing the benefit of assimilating TEMPO data into chemical transport models, and linking air quality patterns to socio-demographic data.

POLARIS_MetNav_AircraftInSitu_ER2_Data is the balloonsonde and ozonesonde data collected during the Photochemistry of Ozone Loss in the Arctic Region in Summer (POLARIS) campaign. Data collection for this product is complete.The POLARIS mission was a joint effort of NASA and NOAA that occurred in 1997 and was designed to expand on the photochemical and transport processes that cause the summer polar decreases in the stratospheric ozone. The POLARIS campaign had the overarching goal of better understanding the change of stratospheric ozone levels from very high concentrations in the spring to very low concentrations in the autumn. The NASA ER-2 high-altitude aircraft was the primary platform deployed along with balloons, satellites, and ground-sites. The POLARIS campaign was based in Fairbanks, Alaska with some flights being conducted from California and Hawaii. Flights were conducted between the summer solstice and fall equinox at mid- to high latitudes. The data collected included meteorological variables; long-lived tracers in reference to summertime transport questions; select species with reactive nitrogen (NOy), halogen (Cly), and hydrogen (HOx) reservoirs; and aerosols. More specifically, the ER-2 utilized various techniques/instruments including Laser Absorption, Gas Chromatography, Non-dispersive IR, UV Photometry, Catalysis, and IR Absorption. These techniques/instruments were used to collect data including N2O, CH4, CH3CCl3, CO2, O3, H2O, and NOy. Ground stations were responsible for collecting SO2 and O3, while balloons recorded pressure, temperature, wind speed, and wind directions. Satellites partnered with these platforms collected meteorological data and Lidar imagery. The observations were used to constrain stratospheric computer models to evaluate ozone changes due to chemistry and transport.

TRACE-A_Sondes_Data is the balloonsonde and ozonesonde data collected during the Transport and Atmospheric Chemistry near the Equator - Atlantic (TRACE-A) suborbital campaign. Data collection for this product is complete.The TRACE-A mission was a part of NASA’s Global Tropospheric Experiment (GTE) – an assemblage of missions conducted from 1983-2001 with various research goals and objectives. TRACE-A was conducted in the Atlantic from September 21 to October 24, 1992. TRACE-A had the objective of determining the cause and source of the high concentrations of ozone that accumulated over the Atlantic Ocean between southern Africa and South America from August to October. NASA partnered with the Brazilian Space Agency (INPE) to accomplish this goal.  The NASA DC-8 aircraft and ozonesondes were utilized during TRACE-A to collect the necessary data. The DC-8 was equipped with 19 instruments. A few instruments on the DC-8 include the Differential Absorption Lidar (DIAL), the Laser-Induced Fluorescence, the O3-NO Ethylene/Forward Scattering Spectrometer, the Modified Licor, and the DACOM IR Laser Spectrometer. The DIAL was responsible for a variety of measurements, which include Nadir IR aerosols, Nadir UV aerosols, Zenith IR aerosols, Zenith VS aerosols, ozone, and ozone column. The Laser-Induced Fluorescence instrument collected measurements on NxOy in the atmosphere. Measurements of ozone were recorded by the O3-NO Ethylene/Forward Scattering Spectrometer while the Modified Licor recorded CO2. Finally, the DACOM IR Laser Spectrometer gathered an assortment of data points, including CO, O3, N2O, CH4, and CO2. Ozonesondes played a role in data collection for TRACE-A along with the DC-8 aircraft. The sondes were dropped from the DC-8 aircraft in order to gather data on ozone, temperature, and atmospheric pressure.

TRACE-P_Sondes_Data is the balloonsonde and ozonesonde data collected during the Transport and Chemical Evolution over the Pacific (TRACE-P) suborbital campaign. Data collection for this product is complete.The NASA TRACE-P mission was a part of NASA’s Global Tropospheric Experiment (GTE) – an assemblage of missions conducted from 1983-2001 with various research goals and objectives. TRACE-P was a multi-organizational campaign with NASA, the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), and several US universities. TRACE-P deployed its payloads in the Pacific between the months of March and April 2001 with the goal of studying the air chemistry emerging from Asia to the western Pacific. Along with this, TRACE-P had the objective studying the chemical evolution of the air as it moved away from Asia.  In order to accomplish its goals, the NASA DC-8 aircraft and NASA P-3B aircraft were deployed, each equipped with various instrumentation. TRACE-P also relied on ground sites, and satellites to collect data. The DC-8 aircraft was equipped with 19 instruments in total while the P-3B boasted 21 total instruments. Some instruments on the DC-8 include the Nephelometer, the GCMS, the Nitric Oxide Chemiluminescence, the Differential Absorption Lidar (DIAL), and the Dual Channel Collectors and Fluorometers, HPLC. The Nephelometer was utilized to gather data on various wavelengths including aerosol scattering (450, 550, 700nm), aerosol absorption (565nm), equivalent BC mass, and air density ratio. The GCMS was responsible for capturing a multitude of compounds in the atmosphere, some of which include CH4, CH3CHO, CH3Br, CH3Cl, CHBr3, and C2H6O. DIAL was used for a variety of measurements, some of which include aerosol wavelength dependence (1064/587nm), IR aerosol scattering ratio (1064nm), tropopause heights and ozone columns, visible aerosol scattering ratio, composite tropospheric ozone cross-sections, and visible aerosol depolarization. Finally, the Dual Channel Collectors and Fluorometers, HPLC collected data on H2O2, CH3OOH, and CH2O in the atmosphere. The P-3B aircraft was equipped with various instruments for TRACE-P, some of which include the MSA/CIMS, the Non-dispersive IR Spectrometer, the PILS-Ion Chromatograph, and the Condensation particle counter and Pulse Height Analysis (PHA). The MSA/CIMS measured OH, H2SO4, MSA, and HNO3. The Non-dispersive IR Spectrometer took measurements on CO2 in the atmosphere. The PILS-Ion Chromatograph recorded measurements of compounds and elements in the atmosphere, including sodium, calcium, potassium, magnesium, chloride, NH4, NO3, and SO4. Finally, the Condensation particle counter and PHA was used to gather data on total UCN, UCN 3-8nm, and UCN 3-4nm. Along with the aircrafts, ground stations measured air quality from China along with C2H2, C2H6, CO, and HCN. Finally, satellites imagery was used to collect a multitude of data, some of the uses were to observe the history of lightning flashes, SeaWiFS cloud imagery, 8-day exposure to TOMS aerosols, and SeaWiFS aerosol optical thickness. The imagery was used to best aid in planning for the aircraft deployment.

DCOTSS-Balloon-Data features the balloon data collected during the Dynamics and Chemistry of the Summer Stratosphere sub-orbital campaign. DCOTSS-Ozone-H2O features balloon flights that include both ozone and water vapor trace gas measurements while DCOTSS-Ozone features balloons with only ozone measurements. Balloons were launched from the following locations: Boulder, CO; Salina, KS: Corpus Christi, TX; and Grand Forks, ND. Data collection for this product is ongoing and currently only features the first deployment. Each summer the North American Monsoon Anticyclone (NAMA) dominates the circulation of the North-Western Hemisphere and acts to partially confine and isolate air from the surrounding atmosphere. Strong convective storms in the NAMA regularly reach altitudes deep into the lower stratosphere, with some ascending above 20 km. These storms carry water and pollutants from the troposphere into the otherwise very dry stratosphere, where they can have a significant impact on radiative and chemical processes, potentially including destruction of stratospheric ozone. The Dynamics and Chemistry of the Summer Stratosphere (DCOTSS) field campaign is a NASA Earth Venture Suborbital research project aimed at investigating these thunderstorms. DCOTSS utilizes NASA’s ER-2 aircraft and conducted two ~8-week science deployments based out of Salina, KS spanning early to late summer.