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Full catalog/M2SMNXSLV
M2SMNXSLV·v5.12.4·dataset

Monthly weather statistics near the surface (MERRA-2)

MERRA-2 statM_2d_slv_Nx: 2d,Monthly,Aggregated Statistics,Single-Level,Assimilation,Single-Level Diagnostics 0.625 x 0.5 degree V5.12.4 (M2SMNXSLV) at GES DISC
atmosphere NASA GES_DISC Level 4 active
In plain English

What it measures. Monthly summaries of near-surface weather statistics, such as the daily average, minimum, and maximum air temperature at 2 meters, and peak precipitation rate during the month.

How it's made. Produced by MERRA-2, NASA's reanalysis system that merges satellite-era observations into a consistent global model using GEOS, covering 1980 to the present.

How & where you'd use it. Useful for studying climate trends, extreme temperatures, and rainfall patterns over decades in a consistent way.

What's measured

ATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATURE › SURFACE TEMPERATURE › AIR TEMPERATUREATMOSPHERE › PRECIPITATION › PRECIPITATION RATEATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATURE › SURFACE TEMPERATURE › MAXIMUM/MINIMUM TEMPERATURE › 24 HOUR MAXIMUM TEMPERATUREATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATURE › SURFACE TEMPERATURE › MAXIMUM/MINIMUM TEMPERATURE › 24 HOUR MINIMUM TEMPERATURE

Coverage & cadence

  • Time span1980-01-01 → ongoing
  • Measured byMERRA-2 (NOT APPLICABLE)
  • Processing levelLevel 4
  • Spatial extent-180, -90, 180, 90
  • StatusACTIVE

What you can do with it

  • Map air pollutants — NO₂, aerosols, ozone
  • Track greenhouse gases and Earth's energy budget
  • Feed weather and air-quality analysis
Official description

M2SMNXSLV (or statM_2d_slv_Nx) is a 2-dimensional monthly mean data collection in Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications version 2 (MERRA-2). This collection consists of monthly mean of daily statistics, such as daily mean (or daily minimum and maximum) air temperature at 2-meter, and maximum precipitation rate during the period. The collection also includes the variance of parameters. MERRA-2 is the latest version of global atmospheric reanalysis for the satellite era produced by NASA Global Modeling and Assimilation Office (GMAO) using the Goddard Earth Observing System Model (GEOS) version 5.12.4. The dataset covers the period of 1980-present with the latency of ~3 weeks after the end of a month. Data Reprocessing: Please check “Records of MERRA-2 Data Reprocessing and Service Changes” linked from the “Documentation” tab on this page. Note that a reprocessed data filename is different from the original file. MERRA-2 Mailing List: Sign up to receive information on reprocessing of data, changing of tools and services, as well as data announcements from GMAO. Contact the GES DISC Help Desk (gsfc-dl-help-disc@mail.nasa.gov) to be added to the list. Questions: If you have a question, please read "MERRA-2 File Specification Document", “MERRA-2 Data Access – Quick Start Guide”, and FAQs linked from the ”Documentation” tab on this page. If that does not answer your question, you may post your question to the NASA Earthdata Forum (forum.earthdata.nasa.gov) or email the GES DISC Help Desk (gsfc-dl-help-disc@mail.nasa.gov).

Get the data

m2smnxslv_access.py
import earthaccess
earthaccess.login(strategy="netrc")          # free Earthdata Login

results = earthaccess.search_data(
    short_name="M2SMNXSLV",
    version="5.12.4",
    bounding_box=(-122.5, 37.2, -121.8, 37.9),  # your area (W,S,E,N)
    temporal=("2024-01-01", "2024-12-31"),       # your dates
)
files = earthaccess.open(results)   # stream straight from GES_DISC
Browsing CMR needs no login. Downloading or streaming bytes needs a free Earthdata Login + the earthaccess package.