Global Formaldehyde Products from the Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite
(OMPS) Nadir Mappers on Suomi NPP and NOAA-20
Abstract
We describe new publicly-available, multi-year formaldehyde (HCHO) data
records from the Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite (OMPS) nadir mapper
(NM) instruments on the Suomi NPP and NOAA-20 satellites. The OMPS-NM
instruments measure backscattered UV light over the globe once per day,
with spatial resolutions close to nadir of 50 × 50 km² (OMPS/Suomi-NPP)
and 17 × 17 km² or 12 × 17 km² (OMPS/NOAA-20). After a preliminary
instrument line shape and wavelength calibration using on-orbit
observations, we use the backscatter measurements in a direct spectral
fit of radiances, in combination with a nadir reference spectrum
collected over a clean area, to determine slant columns of HCHO. The
slant columns are converted to vertical columns using air mass factors
derived through scene-by-scene radiative transfer calculations. Finally,
a correction is applied to account for background HCHO in the reference
spectrum, as well as any remaining high-latitude biases. We investigate
the consistency of the OMPS products from Suomi NPP and NOAA-20 using
long-term monthly means over 12 geographic regions, and also compare the
products with publicly-available TROPOMI HCHO observations.
OMPS/Suomi-NPP and OMPS/NOAA-20 monthly mean HCHO vertical columns are
highly consistent (r = 0.98), with low proportional (2 %) and offset
(2×10¹⁴ molecules cm⁻²) biases. OMPS HCHO monthly means are also
well-correlated with those from TROPOMI (r = 0.92), although they are
consistently 10±16 % larger in polluted regions (columns
>8×10¹⁵ molecules cm⁻²). These differences result primarily
from differences in air mass factors.