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Dust/Ash/Smoke Data Access and Tools

Dust, ash, and smoke data from NASA range from aerosol indexes to fire and thermal anomaly detections. Our datasets and tools help users find and integrate the data they need to track airborne particles, locate their sources, determine their downstream effects and other important facts.

Commonly Used Dust Score Data at a Glance

Very large dust storms lasting hours or days can be observed and tracked using satellite imagery. The amount of dust transported by these storms can be quantified using the Dust Score, which is calculated from data acquired by the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) instrument aboard NASA’s Aqua satellite. The AIRS Dust Score indicates the level of atmospheric aerosols in Earth’s atmosphere over the ocean. Dust is probable when the score is above 380, and higher scores indicate more certainty that dust is present. The numerical scale is a qualitative representation of the presence of dust in the atmosphere, an indication of where large dust storms may form, and the areas that may be affected.

An asterisk (*) next to an entry indicates that near real-time (NRT) data products are available through NASA's Land, Atmosphere Near real-time Capability for EOS (LANCE). While not intended for scientific research, NRT data are good resources for monitoring ongoing or time-critical events. For more information about the differences between NRT and Standard Science Products, please see Near Real-Time versus Standard Products.

Spatial Resolution	Spatial Coverage	Temporal Resolution	Temporal Coverage	Spectral Resolution	Satellite/ Platform	Name (Sensor, Model, etc.)	Observation, Model, or Reanalysis	File Format
50 km	Global	6 min, hourly, 3-hourly, 6-hourly	2016-present for NRT, 2002 for other	2,378 infrared channels in the 3.74 to 15.4 micron spectral range	Aqua	*AIRS	Observation	HDF-EOS

Dust/Ash/Smoke Datasets

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Dataset Sort descending	Version	Platform	Instrument	Temporal Extent	Spatial Extent	Spatial Resolution	Data Format
ACCLIP WB-57 Aircraft Merge Data	1	NASA WB-57F	Computer	2022-07-16 to 2022-09-14	N: 61.5 S: 16.6 E: 180 W: -180		ICARTT
ACCLIP WB-57 Aircraft Model Data	1	GEOS, NASA WB-57F	Computer, MMS	2022-07-14 to 2022-09-14			ICARTT
ACT-America: HALO Lidar Measurements of AOP and ML Heights, 2019	1	C-130	DIAL, HSRL, HALO	2019-06-17 to 2019-07-28	N: 50 S: 28 E: -73 W: -102		multiple
AIRS/Aqua L1B Infrared (IR) geolocated and calibrated radiances V005 (AIRIBRAD) at GES DISC	005	Aqua	AIRS	2002-08-30 to Present	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	13.5 Kilometers x 13.5 Kilometers
AIRS/Aqua L1B Infrared (IR) geolocated and calibrated radiances V8.0 (AIRSAQIRL1B) at GES DISC at GES DISC	8.0	Aqua	AIRS	2002-08-30 to Present	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	13.5 Kilometers x 13.5 Kilometers
AIRS/Aqua L1B Near Real Time (NRT) Infrared (IR) geolocated and calibrated radiances in BUFR format V005 (AIRIBRAD_NRT_BUFR) at GES DISC	005	Aqua	AIRS	2015-12-15 to Present	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	13.5 Kilometers x 13.5 Kilometers
AIRS/Aqua L1B Near Real Time (NRT) Infrared (IR) geolocated and calibrated radiances V005 (AIRIBRAD_NRT) at GES DISC	005	Aqua	AIRS	2015-12-15 to Present	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	13.5 Kilometers x 13.5 Kilometers
AIRS/Aqua L1B Near Real Time (NRT) Infrared (IR) geolocated and calibrated radiances V8.0 (AIRSAQIRL1B_NRT) at GES DISC	8.0	Aqua	AIRS	2002-08-30 to Present	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	13.5 Kilometers x 13.5 Kilometers
AIRS/Aqua L1C Infrared (IR) resampled and corrected radiances V6.7 (AIRICRAD) at GES DISC	6.7	Aqua	AIRS	2002-08-30 to Present	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	13.5 Kilometers x 13.5 Kilometers
AIRS/Aqua L1C Near Real Time (NRT) Infrared (IR) resampled and corrected radiances V6.7 (AIRICRAD_NRT) at GES DISC	6.7	Aqua	AIRS	2002-09-06 to Present	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	13.5 Kilometers x 13.5 Kilometers
Ancillary speciated PM data from the MAIA Surface Monitor Network	C01	GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS	SM Network	2021-01-01 to Present			netCDF-4
Ancillary total PM data from the MAIA Surface Monitor Network	C01	GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS	SM Network	2021-01-01 to Present			netCDF-4
ARCSIX LaRC G-III High Altitude Lidar Observatory (HALO) Data	1	G-III	HALO	2024-05-28 to 2024-08-18	N: 85.87 S: 36.65 E: 2.79 W: -108.39		HDF5, PNG
ARCSIX P-3B In-Situ Aerosol Data	1	P-3B	NMASS II, POPS, UHSAS, ToF-AMS, DASH-SP, FIMS, APS, CCN, TSI-3563 Neph, DMT SP2, PUTLS, TSI CPC-3772	2024-05-17 to 2024-08-18	N: 86.06 S: 37 E: -7.9 W: -105.18		ICARTT
ARCTAS Model Data	1	CLIMATE MODELS, GEOS-5, GEOS-Chem	Computer	2008-03-30 to 2008-07-14			netCDF-3, ICARTT
ASIA-AQ Analysis Data	1	NASA DC-8, Data Analysis	Computer	2024-01-23 to 2024-04-02	N: 61.38 S: 12.46 E: 180 W: -180		ICARTT
ATom: DC-8 Forward Camera Videos, 2016-2017	1	NASA DC-8	CAMERAS	2016-08-01 to 2017-10-20	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180		MP4
ATom: Dominant Role of Mineral Dust in Cirrus Cloud Formation	1	CESM, GEOS-Chem, NCEP-GFS, NASA DC-8	Computer, PALMS	2014-01-01 to 2019-01-01	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180		multiple
ATom: In Situ Tropical Aerosol Properties and Comparable Global Model Outputs	1	COMPUTERS, NASA DC-8	Computer, PALMS	2016-07-29 to 2017-02-21	N: 80.5222 S: -65.3316 E: 180 W: -180		multiple
ATom: In-Situ Measurements of Airflow and Aerosols from Multiple Airborne Campaigns	1	NASA DC-8	MMS, CAPS	2013-06-10 to 2018-05-21	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180		CSV
CALIPSO Lidar Level 2 1/3 km Merged Layer, V4-51	V4-51	CALIPSO	CALIOP	2006-06-12 to 2023-06-30			HDF4
CALIPSO Lidar Level 2 5 km Aerosol Layer Data, V4-51	V4-51	CALIPSO	CALIOP	2006-06-12 to 2023-06-30			HDF4
CALIPSO Lidar Level 2 5 km Aerosol Layer Data, V5-00	V5-00	CALIPSO	CALIOP	2006-06-12 to 2023-06-30			HDF4
CALIPSO Lidar Level 2 5 km Merged Layer, V4-51	V4-51	CALIPSO	CALIOP	2006-06-12 to 2023-06-30			HDF4
CALIPSO Lidar Level 2 Aerosol Profile, V4-51	V4-51	CALIPSO	CALIOP	2006-06-12 to 2023-06-30			HDF4

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AIRS Near Real-Time Data

Near real-time 3D atmospheric data from the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) instrument are available through NASA's Land, Atmosphere Near real-time Capability for Earth observation (LANCE).

This image from the AIRS instrument shows surface air temperature over North America and the Arctic on December 22nd, 2022.

Contributions of NASA's AIRS Instrument Continue with CrIS, ATMS

Next-generation instruments aboard Joint Polar Satellite System spacecraft provide continuity to the AIRS project that began in 2002.

11 MIN READ

Earthdata graphic identifier on top of map of Earth and binary code

Access AIRS data from GES DISC via OPeNDAP

Learn how to access and visualize Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) grid data from NASA's Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC) in Python.

A destroyed amusement park wrecked by Hurricane Sandy

LANCE Data Contribute to the Successful Forecast of Hurricane Sandy

A recent study reviewed the impact of satellite data in accurately forecasting the path of Hurricane Sandy. The study showed that AIRS NRT data from NASA’s polar-orbiting satellites significantly improve these predictions.

6 MIN READ

Dust/Ash/Smoke Data Tools

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