July 12, 2023, 4:25 p.m.

Project: STAQS

The Synergistic TEMPO Air Quality Science (STAQS) mission began its first deployment during June 2023 and is scheduled to conduct flights through the end of August 2023. Targeting urban areas, including Los Angeles, New York City, and Chicago, STAQS seeks to integrate the Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) satellite observations with traditional air quality monitoring to improve understanding of air quality science and enhance societal benefits.

STAQS is utilizing two aircraft outfitted with various remote sensing payloads. The Johnson Space Center (JSC) Gulfstream-V (G-V) aircraft features the GeoCAPE Airborne Simulator (GCAS) and combined High Spectral Resolution Lidar-2 (HSRL-2) and Ozone Differential Absorption Lidar (DIAL). The NASA Langley Research Center’s (LaRC’s) Gulfstream-III measures city-scale emissions 2x per day over the targeted cities with the High-altitude Lidar Observatory (HALO) and Airborne Visible InfraRed Imaging Spectrometer – Next Generation (AVIRS-NG). STAQS also incorporates ground-based tropospheric ozone profiles from the NASA Tropospheric Ozone Lidar Network (TOLNet), NO2, HCHO, and ozone measurements from Pandora spectrometers, and will leverage existing networks operated by the EPA and state air quality agencies. Data is tentatively scheduled to be made publicly available at the ASDC during early 2024.