We are in the process of migrating all NASA Earth science data sites into Earthdata from now until end of 2026. Not all NASA Earth science data and resources will appear here until then. Thank you for your patience as we make this transition.
Read about the Web Unification Project
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 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 | 2002-2023 | 2,378 infrared channels in the 3.74-15.4 micron spectral range | Aqua | *AIRS | Observation | HDF-EOS |
| 13 km x 24 km, 0.25°, 1° | Global | 98 minutes, Daily | 2004-present | 1.0-0.45 nm Full Width and Half Maximum (FWHM) | Aura | Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) | Observation | HDF-EOS5 |
| 7.5 km x 3 km | Global | 101 minutes, Daily | 2018 | 250-420 nm | NASA/NOAA Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (Suomi NPP) | Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite (OMPS) | Observation | netCDF-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) | Global | Daily | 2017-present | 270 nm-2.3 µm, 0.55 nm | ESA Sentinel-5P | TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) | Observation | netCDF |
| 165 km x 3 km | Near-global (-82º to +82º latitude) | 15 minutes, Twice daily [day, night] | 2021-present | 190 and 240 GHz | Aura | *MLS | Observation | HDF-EOS5 |
| 0.5° x 0.625° | Global | Hourly, 3 hourly, Monthly | 1980-present | N/A | N/A | MERRA-2 | Reanalysis | 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 |
Sulfur Dioxide Datasets
| Dataset | Platforms | Instruments | Temporal Extent | Location Keywords | Spatial Extent | Data Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DISCOVER-AQ Maryland University of Maryland Cessna Aircraft Data | UMD Cessna | TECO 43C, TECO 49 | 2011-07-05 to 2011-08-02 | NORTH AMERICA, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, MARYLAND, WESTERN HEMISPHERE | ICARTT | |
| DISCOVER-AQ Texas Deployment Galveston Ground Site Data | GROUND STATIONS | CEILOMETERS, CHEMILUMINESCENCE, PHOTOMETERS, FLUORESCENCE SPECTROSCOPY | 2013-08-29 to 2013-10-01 | NORTH AMERICA, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, TEXAS, NORTHERN HEMISPHERE, WESTERN HEMISPHERE | ICARTT | |
| DISCOVER-AQ Texas Deployment Moody Tower Ground Site Data | GROUND STATIONS | LIDAR, Thermo Model 49C O3 Analyzer, Thermo Scientific SO2 43i Analyzer, Thermo Scientific CO Analyzer, Thermo Model 42C NO-NO2-NOx Analyzer, Thermo Scientific NOx Analyzer, RM Young 05103 Wind Monitor, HMP45C Temperature and Relative Humidity Probe | 2013-08-30 to 2013-10-02 | NORTH AMERICA, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, TEXAS, NORTHERN HEMISPHERE, WESTERN HEMISPHERE | HDF5, ICARTT | |
| DISCOVER-AQ Texas Deployment P-3B Aircraft In Situ Trace Gas Data | P-3B | TD-LIF, DACOM, DFGAS, CHEMILUMINESCENCE, PTR-MS, LI-6252 | 2013-08-26 to 2013-10-01 | NORTH AMERICA, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, TEXAS, NORTHERN HEMISPHERE, WESTERN HEMISPHERE | ICARTT | |
| DISCOVER-AQ Texas Deployment Smith Point Ground Site Data | GROUND STATIONS | MPL, 2B Technologies, 2B Technologies NO Monitor, 2B Technologies NO2 Converter, APS, TSI CPC-3010, MULTIFILTER RADIOMETER, CAPS NO2 Analyzer, TEMPERATURE SENSORS, PRESSURE SENSORS | 2013-08-27 to 2013-09-30 | NORTH AMERICA, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, TEXAS, NORTHERN HEMISPHERE, WESTERN HEMISPHERE | HDF5, ICARTT | |
| DSCOVR EPIC L2 Ozone (O3), Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) Aerosol Index (AI) with Epic L1B V03 Input, Version 2 | DSCOVR | EPIC | 2015-06-13 to Present | GLOBAL | HDF5 | |
| DSCOVR EPIC Level 2 O3SO2AI | DSCOVR | EPIC | 2015-06-13 to Present | GLOBAL | HDF5 | |
| FIREX-AQ DC-8 Remotely Sensed Trace Gas Data | NASA DC-8 | DOAS | 2019-07-16 to 2019-09-07 | CONTINENT, NORTH AMERICA, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, GEOGRAPHIC REGION, WESTERN HEMISPHERE | NetCDF-3 | |
| First ISCCP Regional Experiment (FIRE) Atlantic Stratocumulus Transition Experiment (ASTEX) MAGE Oceanus Sulfur in the Air Data | Ships | SPECTROMETERS, MASS SPECTROMETERS, GAS CHROMATOGRAPHS | 1992-06-03 to 1992-06-18 | ATLANTIC OCEAN, NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN, MID-LATITUDE, BOUNDARY LAYER, TROPOSPHERE | ASCII | |
| First ISCCP Regional Experiment (FIRE) Atlantic Stratocumulus Transition Experiment (ASTEX) United Kingdom Meteorological Office (UKMO) C-130 Aircraft Data | C-130 | PYRANOMETERS, PRT, HYGROMETERS, PMS, GUST PROBES, CLOUD LIQUID WATER PROBE, RADIOMETERS, THERMOMETERS | 1992-05-30 to 1992-06-23 | ATLANTIC OCEAN, AZORES, BOUNDARY LAYER, TROPOSPHERE | Binary |
SHOWING 10 OF 168
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.
OMPS SIPS is responsible for processing, reprocessing, production and general assessment of Suomi NPP VIIRS OMPS Nadir products.
Data from the next-generation Instruments will help atmospheric scientists advance air quality measurements and standards.
20 MIN READ
The new PyroCumuloNimbus product for the Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite (OMPS) makes it easier to track and analyze high concentrations of aerosols from wildfires and similar events.
4 MIN READ
Frequently Asked Questions
Earthdata Forum
Our online forum provides a space for users to browse thousands of FAQs about research needs, data, and data applications. You can also submit new questions for our experts to answer.
Submit Questions to Earthdata Forumand View Expert Responses