This dataset represents Version 2 of the JPL GRACE Mascon Equivalent Water Height RL05M.1, providing global water storage anomalies relative to a time-mean of monthly mass grids as derived from GRACE. These data are provided in a single data file in netCDF format and is applicable for ocean, ice, and hydrology. It should be noted that this dataset does not correct for leakage errors across coastlines; it is therefore recommended only for users who want to apply their own algorithm to separate between land and ocean mass very near coastlines. The storage anomalies are given in equivalent water thickness units (cm). The solution provided here is derived from solving for monthly gravity field variations in terms of spherical cap mass concentration functions, rather than spherical harmonic coefficients. Additionally, realistic geophysical information is introduced during the solution inversion to intrinsically remove correlated error. Thus, these Mascon solutions do not need to be destriped or smoothed, like traditional spherical harmonic gravity solutions. The complete Mascon solution consists of 4,551 relatively independent estimates of surface mass change that have been estimated using an equal-area 3-degree grid of individual mascons. A summary of changes and enhancements to Version 2 (compared to Version 1) can be found in PO.DAAC Drive at https://podaac-tools.jpl.nasa.gov/drive/files/allData/tellus/L3/mascon/RL05/JPL/README.txt. As a result of these enhancements, the GRACE Project advises users to no longer continue using the Version 1 Mascon data, and to follow this recommendation we have retired the Version 1 dataset. Please refer to the 'Data Access' tab at the top of this page to gain direct access to the Mascon data. For more information, please visit http://grace.jpl.nasa.gov/data/get-data/jpl_global_mascons/. For a detailed description on the Mascon solution, including the mathematical derivation, implementation of geophysical constraints, and solution validation, please see Watkins et al., 2015, doi: 10.1002/2014JB011547. This product is intended for expert use only; other users are encouraged to use the CRI-filtered Mascon dataset, which is available here: http://podaac.jpl.nasa.gov/dataset/TELLUS_GRACE_MASCON_CRI_GRID_RL05_V2.