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Full catalog/SNDRSNIML2CPS
SNDRSNIML2CPS·v2.1·dataset

Temperature and moisture through the air column (Suomi NPP, full-res)

Sounder SIPS: Suomi NPP CrIMSS Level 2 CLIMCAPS Full Spectral Resolution: retrieved atmospheric state V2.1 (SNDRSNIML2CPS) at GES DISC
atmosphere NASA GES_DISC Level 2 active
In plain English

What it measures. Detailed vertical profiles of the atmosphere's temperature, water vapor, and ozone, plus surface temperature, cloud-top details, and amounts of gases like carbon monoxide, methane, and carbon dioxide.

How it's made. Retrieved from the combined infrared and microwave sounders (CrIS and ATMS) on the Suomi NPP satellite using the CLIMCAPS algorithm, with each file covering six minutes of data.

How & where you'd use it. Supports weather forecasting and studies of the atmosphere's structure and composition, giving a layered view of conditions from the surface up through the air column.

What's measured

ATMOSPHERE › AIR QUALITY › TROPOSPHERIC OZONEATMOSPHERE › ALTITUDE › TROPOPAUSEATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC CHEMISTRYATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC CHEMISTRY › CARBON AND HYDROCARBON COMPOUNDSATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC CHEMISTRY › CARBON AND HYDROCARBON COMPOUNDS › METHANEATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC RADIATION › OUTGOING LONGWAVE RADIATIONATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATUREATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATURE › SURFACE TEMPERATUREATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATURE › SURFACE TEMPERATURE › AIR TEMPERATUREATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATURE › SURFACE TEMPERATURE › SKIN TEMPERATUREATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATURE › UPPER AIR TEMPERATUREATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATURE › UPPER AIR TEMPERATURE › VERTICAL PROFILESATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC WATER VAPORATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC WATER VAPOR › WATER VAPOR INDICATORS › LAYERED PRECIPITABLE WATER

Coverage & cadence

  • Time span2015-11-02 → ongoing
  • Measured bySuomi-NPP (CrIS, ATMS)
  • 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

The CLIMCAPS (Community Long-term Infrared Microwave Coupled Product System) algorithm is used to analyze data from the Cross-track Infrared Sounder/Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder (CrIS/ATMS) instruments, also known as CrIMSS (Cross-track Infrared and Microwave Sounding Suite). The CrIS/ATMS instruments used for this product are on board the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (SNPP) platform and use the Full Spectral Resolution (FSR) data. The CrIS instrument is a Fourier transform spectrometer with a total of 2211 FSR infrared sounding channels covering the longwave (645-1095 cm-1), midwave (1210-1750 cm-1), and shortwave (2000-2550 cm-1) spectral regions. The ATMS instrument is a cross-track scanner with 22 channels in spectral bands from 23 GHz through 183 GHz. The CLIMCAPS algorithm uses an Optimal Estimation methodology and uses an a-priori first guess to start the process. A CLIMCAPS sounding is comprised of a set of parameters that characterizes the full atmospheric state and includes a variety of geophysical parameters derived from the CrIMSS data. These include surface temperature and infrared emissivity; full atmosphere profiles of temperature, water vapor and ozone; infrared effective cloud top characteristics; carbon monoxide, methane, carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrous oxide, and nitric acid. A level 2 granule has been set as 6 minutes of data, 30 footprints cross track by 45 lines along track. There are 240 granules per day, with an orbit repeat cycle of approximately 16 day. The CLIMCAPS algorithm uses data from the second Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA-2) as a first-guess for the atmospheric state. Because MERRA-2 products typically have a latency from 3 to 7 weeks, so too do the CLIMCAPS products.

Get the data

sndrsniml2cps_access.py
import earthaccess
earthaccess.login(strategy="netrc")          # free Earthdata Login

results = earthaccess.search_data(
    short_name="SNDRSNIML2CPS",
    version="2.1",
    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.