KORUS-AQ NASA Ground Site Data

KORUSAQ_Ground_NASA_Data are ground site measurements collected by NASA instrumentation at the NIER-Taehwa ground site during the KORUS-AQ field campaign. This product features data collected by TILDAS and DIAL. Data collection for this product is complete.

The KORUS-AQ field study was conducted in South Korea during May-June, 2016. The study was jointly sponsored by NASA and Korea’s National Institute of Environmental Research (NIER). The primary objectives were to investigate the factors controlling air quality in Korea (e.g., local emissions, chemical processes, and transboundary transport) and to assess future air quality observing strategies incorporating geostationary satellite observations. To achieve these science objectives, KORUS-AQ adopted a highly coordinated sampling strategy involved surface and airborne measurements including both in-situ and remote sensing instruments.

Surface observations provided details on ground-level air quality conditions while airborne sampling provided an assessment of conditions aloft relevant to satellite observations and necessary to understand the role of emissions, chemistry, and dynamics in determining air quality outcomes. The sampling region covers the South Korean peninsula and surrounding waters with a primary focus on the Seoul Metropolitan Area. Airborne sampling was primarily conducted from near surface to about 8 km with extensive profiling to characterize the vertical distribution of pollutants and their precursors. The airborne observational data were collected from three aircraft platforms: the NASA DC-8, NASA B-200, and Hanseo King Air. Surface measurements were conducted from 16 ground sites and 2 ships: R/V Onnuri and R/V Jang Mok.

The major data products collected from both the ground and air include in-situ measurements of trace gases (e.g., ozone, reactive nitrogen species, carbon monoxide and dioxide, methane, non-methane and oxygenated hydrocarbon species), aerosols (e.g., microphysical and optical properties and chemical composition), active remote sensing of ozone and aerosols, and passive remote sensing of NO2, CH2O, and O3 column densities. These data products support research focused on examining the impact of photochemistry and transport on ozone and aerosols, evaluating emissions inventories, and assessing the potential use of satellite observations in air quality studies.

Data and Resources

Additional Info

Field Value
Maintainer Earthdata Forum
Last Updated October 27, 2026, 11:57 (UTC)
Created April 1, 2025, 16:49 (UTC)
Identifier 10.5067/ASDC/SUBORBITAL/KORUSAQ_Ground_NASA_Data_1
Modified 2026-10-19T22:16:07Z
Theme {"Earth Science"}
accessLevel public
bureauCode {026:00}
catalog_conformsTo https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema
harvest_object_id 624a1677-6820-479b-ae3b-e5c30a79bcf1
harvest_source_id b99e41c6-fe79-4c19-bbc3-9b6c8111bfac
harvest_source_title Science Discovery Engine
license https://www.usa.gov/government-works
programCode {026:000}
publisher NASA/LARC/SD/ASDC
resource-type Dataset
source_datajson_identifier true
source_hash 0bedb68d0a0dc48a41c231864ef74c8180e4149d0f431f7f174ccf4a32567568
source_schema_version 1.1
spatial ["CARTESIAN", [{"WestBoundingCoordinate": 127.21, "EastBoundingCoordinate": 127.42, "SouthBoundingCoordinate": 37.21, "NorthBoundingCoordinate": 37.42}]], Maximum Altitude, 200 meters
temporal 2016-04-24/2016-06-13