Earth Data School
About
Full catalog/M2TMNXFLX
M2TMNXFLX·v5.12.4·dataset

Monthly surface energy and water flow model (MERRA-2)

MERRA-2 tavgM_2d_flx_Nx: 2d,Monthly mean,Time-Averaged,Single-Level,Assimilation,Surface Flux Diagnostics 0.625 x 0.5 degree V5.12.4 (M2TMNXFLX) at GES DISC
atmosphere NASA GES_DISC Level 4 active
In plain English

What it measures. Monthly averages of how water and energy move at the land surface worldwide, including rainfall, near-surface air temperature, humidity, wind speed, and evaporation.

How it's made. A model-based reanalysis (MERRA-2) that blends decades of satellite observations into NASA's GEOS weather model to produce a consistent global picture.

How & where you'd use it. Useful for studying climate and weather patterns over time, comparing regions, and feeding other environmental models with reliable surface conditions.

What's measured

ATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC RADIATION › HEAT FLUXATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATURE › SURFACE TEMPERATURE › AIR TEMPERATUREATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATURE › SURFACE TEMPERATURE › SKIN TEMPERATUREATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC WATER VAPOR › WATER VAPOR INDICATORS › HUMIDITY › SPECIFIC HUMIDITYATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC WATER VAPOR › WATER VAPOR INDICATORS › WATER VAPORATMOSPHERE › PRECIPITATION › PRECIPITATION RATETERRESTRIAL HYDROSPHERE › SNOW/ICEATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC WATER VAPOR › WATER VAPOR PROCESSES › EVAPORATIONATMOSPHERE › PRECIPITATION › PRECIPITATION PROFILES › LATENT HEAT FLUXOCEANS › OCEAN HEAT BUDGET › HEAT FLUX › LATENT HEAT FLUXOCEANS › OCEAN HEAT BUDGET › HEAT FLUX › SENSIBLE HEAT FLUXOCEANS › OCEAN HEAT BUDGET › DIFFUSIONOCEANS › OCEAN WINDS › SURFACE WINDSATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC WINDS › SURFACE WINDS › WIND SPEED

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

M2TMNXFLX (or tavgM_2d_flx_Nx) is a time-averaged 2-dimensional monthly mean data collection in Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications version 2 (MERRA-2). This collection consists of assimilated surface flux diagnostics, such as total precipitation, bias corrected total precipitation, surface air temperature, surface specific humidity, surface wind speed, and evaporation from turbulence. The “surface” in this data collection is the model surface layer. The heights of the model surface layer (HLML) vary with time and location, with the value of ~60 meter above ground. The collection also includes variance of certain 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

m2tmnxflx_access.py
import earthaccess
earthaccess.login(strategy="netrc")          # free Earthdata Login

results = earthaccess.search_data(
    short_name="M2TMNXFLX",
    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.