Observing tropospheric trace gases from space: recent advances and future capabilities

Abstract

We present a brief overview of the methodology developed over the past decade to derive tropospheric ozone fields from satellite measurements and will highlight some of the recent progress that has resulted in the ability to formulate its depiction on a daily basis. For the first time, we present a climatology of tropospheric ozone derived from TOMS and SBUV observations using the empirically corrected tropospheric ozone residual methodology described in Fishman and Balok (1999) and Balok and Fishman (2001). When compared to an earlier published tropospheric ozone data set that had been derived from TOMS and SAGE measurements, much better agreement is found than when uncorrected SBUV data had been used. The availability of such a data set will allow for much better temporal resolution than had been previously available. Despite the recent advances made through the technique presented here as well as the satellite capabilities that are currently just over the horizon, it is suggested that a quantum leap in measurement capability can be attained through the use instruments on geostationary platforms.