ATom: Development of Cloud Indicator Algorithm Using Airborne Observations from CAPS

This dataset is the basis for the development of the Cloud Indicator, a novel algorithm that automatically detects and classifies measurement periods inside clouds. The included data were used in the analysis and development of figures for the related publication. The Cloud Indicator algorithm was developed based on particle size distribution measurements from a second-generation Cloud, Aerosol, and Precipitation Spectrometer (CAPS) combined with measurements of relative humidity and temperature from other sensors, to automatically detect flight sequences in clouds and classify the cloud type. Measurements were collected on 2016-08-20 as part of the Atmospheric Tomography Mission (ATom-1) Campaign and on 2017-04-20 as part of the Absorbing aerosol layers in a changing climate: aging, LIFEtime and dynamics (A-LIFE) project. As an additional criterion for the Cloud Indicator, a cloud-aerosol volume factor was established to ensure a precise and robust distinction between clouds and aerosol layers such as mineral dust or biomass burning to reduce misclassifications. Data are provided in netCDF (*.nc) format.

Data and Resources

Additional Info

Field Value
Maintainer Earthdata Forum
Last Updated September 8, 2026, 04:57 (UTC)
Created April 1, 2025, 14:37 (UTC)
accessLevel public
bureauCode {026:00}
catalog_conformsTo https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema
harvest_object_id 6194b036-e605-4e19-829a-36f199600e79
harvest_source_id b99e41c6-fe79-4c19-bbc3-9b6c8111bfac
harvest_source_title Science Discovery Engine
identifier 10.3334/ORNLDAAC/2250
license https://www.usa.gov/government-works
modified 2026-08-31T22:16:02Z
programCode {026:000}
publisher ORNL_DAAC
resource-type Dataset
source_datajson_identifier true
source_hash 5c2a5a853ca491741c1b7b753c391229e49b5b387002ff3f6711b647be570af4
source_schema_version 1.1
spatial ["CARTESIAN", [{"WestBoundingCoordinate": -180.0, "NorthBoundingCoordinate": 90.0, "EastBoundingCoordinate": 180.0, "SouthBoundingCoordinate": -90.0}]]
temporal 2016-07-01/2019-09-30
theme {"Earth Science"}