A New Data Set of Thermospheric Molecular Oxygen From the Global‐scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) Mission

Abstract

AbstractThe Global‐scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) instrument was launched on 25 January 2018 onboard the SES‐14 commercial communications satellite and began nominal science operations in October 2018. Operating from geostationary orbit at 47.5°W longitude, GOLD images the Earth's thermosphere and ionosphere in the far‐ultraviolet (132–162 nm), measuring critical geophysical parameters by continuously scanning the Earth's disk and limb 18 hours per day. GOLD also performs stellar occultation measurements using bright type O and B stars. Up to 10 occultations per day are obtained at latitudes ranging from 60°S to 45°N and two fixed longitudes, ~33°E and ~128°W. The occultation data provide a direct measurement of atmospheric absorption in the O2 Schumann Runge continuum, which is used to retrieve the O2 density profile from 130‐ to 200‐km altitude. This paper describes the GOLD occultation measurement technique and the operational retrieval algorithm used to derive the Level 2 O2DEN data product. The spatial, temporal, and local time sampling of the GOLD O2 data product is summarized, and the data quality, retrieval errors, and validation plans are discussed. Occultations are observed under both daytime and nighttime conditions, providing the O2 density over a complete range of local times. GOLD retrievals have an estimated precision of 10% and a vertical resolution of 5–10 km, depending on altitude. The data have sufficient accuracy and resolution to provide scientifically useful constraints on the O2 abundance and variability. Initial comparisons show qualitative agreement, but also notable differences, between the GOLD O2 data and the Naval Research Laboratory Mass Spectrometer Incoherent Scatter Radar (NRLMSISE‐00) empirical model predictions.