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Full catalog/OCO2_L2_CO2Prior
OCO2_L2_CO2Prior·v11.2r·dataset

Expected carbon dioxide background, reprocessed (OCO-2)

OCO-2 Level 2 CO2 prior based on CO2 monthly flask record, global meteorology, and age of air Retrospective Processing V11.2r (OCO2_L2_CO2Prior) at GES DISC
atmosphere NASA GES_DISC Level 2 active
In plain English

What it measures. A best-guess starting estimate of how much carbon dioxide should be in the air at each location, based on long-term measurements, weather patterns, and how old the air is.

How it's made. Produced not from a direct satellite reading but as a reprocessed background calculation that supports the OCO-2 mission's carbon dioxide retrievals.

How & where you'd use it. A behind-the-scenes building block: scientists use it as the reference the OCO-2 instrument's actual carbon dioxide measurements are compared against, rather than as a standalone product.

What's measured

ATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC CHEMISTRY › CARBON AND HYDROCARBON COMPOUNDS › ATMOSPHERIC CARBON DIOXIDE

Coverage & cadence

  • Time span2019-11-30 → ongoing
  • Measured byOCO-2 (OCO-2)
  • Processing levelLevel 2
  • 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

Version 11.2r is the current version of the data set. Older versions will no longer be available and are superseded by Version 11.2r. The Orbiting Carbon Observatory is the first NASA mission designed to collect space-based measurements of atmospheric carbon dioxide with the precision, resolution, and coverage needed to characterize the processes controlling its buildup in the atmosphere. The OCO-2 project uses the LEOStar-2 spacecraft that carries a single instrument. It incorporates three high-resolution spectrometers that make coincident measurements of reflected sunlight in the near-infrared CO2 near 1.61 and 2.06 micrometers and in molecular oxygen (O2) A-Band at 0.76 micrometers.

Get the data

oco2_l2_co2prior_access.py
import earthaccess
earthaccess.login(strategy="netrc")          # free Earthdata Login

results = earthaccess.search_data(
    short_name="OCO2_L2_CO2Prior",
    version="11.2r",
    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.