Ozone high in the atmosphere, fast delivery (Aura, near real-time)
What it measures. Ozone amounts high up in the atmosphere, given as profiles showing how the concentration changes with altitude. This is a fast-delivery near-real-time version.
How it's made. Derived from the Microwave Limb Sounder on NASA's Aura satellite using a simplified, speedy processing method so the data arrive within about three hours.
How & where you'd use it. Handy for timely monitoring of high-altitude ozone, but because speed trades off some accuracy, users should screen it per the guidance; the standard product is better for precise work.
What's measured
Coverage & cadence
- Time span2021-09-21 → ongoing
- Measured byAura (MLS)
- Processing levelLevel 2
- Spatial extent-180, -82, 180, 82
- 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
ML2O3_NRT is the EOS Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) Near-Real-Time (NRT) product for ozone (O3). This product contains O3 profiles derived from the 240 GHz region. The NRT data are typically available within 3 hours of observation and are broken into files containing about 15 minutes of data. The most recent 7 days of data are available online. Spatial coverage is near-global (-82 degrees to +82 degrees latitude), with each profile spaced 1.5 degrees or ~165 km along the orbit track (roughly 15 orbits per day). The vertical coverage is from 261 to 0.1 hPa. The MLS NRT algorithm uses a simplified fast forward model to meet Near Real Time data latency requirements and are therefore not as accurate as the retrievals that constitute the standard MLS products. Nevertheless the results are scientifically useful in selected regions of the Earth's atmosphere provided that the data are screened according to the recommendations in the MLS NRT User Guide and the MLS L2 Data Quality Document for Standard Products.
Get the data
import earthaccess
earthaccess.login(strategy="netrc") # free Earthdata Login
results = earthaccess.search_data(
short_name="ML2O3_NRT",
version="005",
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. Official links
- Access the data via HTTPS. User registration is required. Register for a username and password at https://urs.eosdis.nasa.gov/users/new. GET DATA
- Use the Earthdata Search to find and retrieve data sets across multiple data centers. GET DATA
- Aura MLS Version 5 Level 2 Near-Real-Time Data User Guide VIEW RELATED INFORMATION
- Aura MLS Version 5 Level 2 Data Quality and Description Document VIEW RELATED INFORMATION