Instrument

Sunphotometer
Sunphotometer

Sunphotometers are passive optical sensors that measure the amount of sunlight. They are pointed directly at the sun to measure direct sunlight, not sunlight scattered by aerosols. These measurements can be used to determine aerosol optical depth by applying Beer’s Law. Sunphotometers have been deployed on aircraft, research vessels, and field sites for aerosol research and monitoring.

Image of a sunphotometer a Thule Air Base

NASA's DC-8 flying laboratory passes Antarctica's tallest peak, Mount Vinson, on Oct. 22, 2012, during a flight over the continent to measure changes in the massive ice sheet and sea ice. Credit: NASA/Michael Studinger (Photography courtesy NASA Images)

Overview

Instrument Details

Measurement Type

Optical/Photon

Measurement/Variables

Earth Science > Atmosphere > Aerosols

Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Radiation > Sunshine

Earth Science > Atmosphere > Atmospheric Radiation

Earth Science > Atmosphere > Aerosols > Aerosol Optical Depth/thickness

Vertical Measurement Regions

Land Surface, Troposphere

Temporal Resolution

Variable

Spatial Resolution

Variable

Measurement Frequency

Variable

Calibration Details

Currently unavailable

Online Information

https://aeronet.gsfc.nasa.gov/Operational/BSSN/aerosol2-GLOBE.pdf

Lead Investigator
Currently unavailable
Technical Contact
Currently unavailable
Instrument Maker
Varies
Funding Source
Currently unavailable
Overview Publications
Currently unavailable
Repositories
- Atmospheric Science Data Center (ASDC)
- data center outside NASA
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory DAAC (ORNL)

Instrument Operation

Platform

Campaigns, where the platform was used with this instrument

Field Site

Stationary

76 Campaigns · 175 Instruments

ACEPOL

Aerosol Characterization from Polarimeter and Lidar

2017

Western United States

view all deployment dates

· 6 Data Products

OTTER

Oregon Transect Ecosystem Research Project

1989—1991

western coniferous forest in Oregon

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· 14 Data Products

TARFOX

Tropospheric Aerosol Radiative Forcing Observational Experiment

1996

Western Atlantic Ocean, US Eastern Seaboard

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· 5 Data Products

SAFARI 2000

Southern African Regional Science Initiative

1999—2001

Southern Africa

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· 110 Data Products

BOREAS

Boreal Ecosystem-Atmosphere Study

1994—1996

Boreal forests of central Canada

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· 303 Data Products

FIRE

First International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP) Regional Experiment

1986—1998

Central and Midwest United States, California Coast, Northwest Africa, Alaska

view all deployment dates

· 131 Data Products

SCAR

Smoke/Sulfates, Clouds, and Radiation

1993—1995

Mid-Atlantic, Pacific Northwest, Central Brazil

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· 6 Data Products

PAC2001

Pacific 2001 Air Quality Study

2001

Lower Fraser Valley, British Columbia, Canada

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· 8 Data Products

SMEX

Soil Moisture Experiment

2002—2005

Iowa, Oklahoma, Georgia, Alabama, Arizona, Sonora, Mexico

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· 0 Data Products

SHIFT

Surface Biology and Geology (SBG) High-Frequency Time Series

2022

Santa Barbara County, California, Pacific Ocean

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· 17 Data Products

PROVE

Prototype Validation Exercise

1997

Jornada Experimental Range near Las Cruces, New Mexico

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· 4 Data Products

FIFE

First International Satellite Land Surface Climatology Project (ISLSCP) Field Experiment

1987—1989

Central Kansas

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· 115 Data Products

MILAGRO

Megacity Initiative: Local and Global Research Observations

2006

Mexico City Metropolitan Area

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· 0 Data Products

C-130

C-130 Hercules

17 Campaigns · 96 Instruments

OTTER

Oregon Transect Ecosystem Research Project

1989—1991

western coniferous forest in Oregon

view all deployment dates

· 14 Data Products

Onnuri

R/V Onnuri

2 Campaigns · 9 Instruments

KORUS-AQ

Korean United States - Air Quality

2016

South Korean peninsula, including surrounding seas

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· 20 Data Products

KORUS-OC

Korea-United States Ocean Color Study

2016

South Korea, Yellow Sea, East Sea

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· 5 Data Products

Image of a FLUXNET tower in Harvard Forests, Maine

Permanent Land Site

Stationary

63 Campaigns · 100 Instruments

WISC-T2000

Wisconsin Snow and Cloud Terra 2000 Experiment

2000

Upper Midwest, Great Lakes, Canada, Wisconsin

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· 0 Data Products

SUCCESS

SUbsonic aircraft: Contrail & Clouds Effects Special Study

1996

Central and Western United States

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· 1 Data Product

SOLVE

SAGE III Ozone Loss and Validation Experiment

1999—2003

Arctic, Kiruna, Sweden

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· 32 Data Products

ARCSIX

Arctic Radiation-Cloud-Aerosol-Surface Interaction EXperiment

2024

Greenland, Arctic Ocean

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· 13 Data Products

PACE-PAX

Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem Postlaunch Airborne eXperiment

2024

Southern and Central California

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· 14 Data Products

Vehicle

21 Campaigns · 68 Instruments

FIREX-AQ

Fire Influence on Regional to Global Environments and Air Quality

2019

Northwestern and Southeastern US

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· 27 Data Products

MOOSE

Michigan-Ontario Ozone Source Experiment

2021

Southern Ontario, Southeastern Michigan

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· 2 Data Products

INTEX-NA

Intercontinental Chemical Transport Experiment - North America

2004—2006

North America, Gulf of Mexico, North Pacific Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean

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· 21 Data Products

MILAGRO

Megacity Initiative: Local and Global Research Observations

2006

Mexico City Metropolitan Area

view all deployment dates

· 0 Data Products

photo of the research vessel Ronald H Brown

R/V RHB

R/V Ronald H. Brown

4 Campaigns · 51 Instruments

CalWater

2015

California, Sierra Nevada Range

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· 0 Data Products

SO GasEx

Southern Ocean Gas Exchange Experiment

2008

Southern Ocean

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· 0 Data Products

ATOMIC

Atlantic Tradewind Ocean-Atmosphere Mesoscale Interaction Campaign

2020

Tropical North Atlantic east of Barbados

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· 1 Data Product

R/V John Martin

R/V John H. Martin

1 Campaign · 3 Instruments

COAST

Coastal and Ocean Airborne Science Testbed

2011

Monterey Bay, CA

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· 0 Data Products

Endeavor

R/V Endeavor

2 Campaigns · 12 Instruments

SABOR

Ship-Aircraft Bio-Optical Research Experiment

2014

NW Atlantic Ocean

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· 0 Data Products

Permanent Water Site

Stationary

4 Campaigns · 12 Instruments

CLAMS

Chesapeake Lighthouse and Aircraft Measurements for Satellites

2001

Chesapeake Bay, Atlantic Ocean

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· 5 Data Products

R/V Shearwater

1 Campaign · 6 Instruments

PACE-PAX

Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem Postlaunch Airborne eXperiment

2024

Southern and Central California

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· 14 Data Products

Point Sur

R/V Point Sur

2 Campaigns · 12 Instruments

SCOAPE

Satellite Coastal and Oceanic Atmospheric Pollution Experiment

2019—2024

Gulf of Mexico

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· 6 Data Products

Atlantis

R/V Atlantis

2 Campaigns · 33 Instruments

CalNex

California Research at the Nexus of Air Quality and Climate Change

2010

California

view all deployment dates

· 0 Data Products

Data Products

Filter data products from this instrument by specific campaigns, platforms, or formats.

Campaigns

Platforms

Formats

Optical Thickness Cross-Calib. (FIFE)10.3334/ORNLDAAC/60

CampaignsFirst International Satellite Land Surface Climatology Project (ISLSCP) Field Experiment

PlatformsC-130 Hercules, Field Site

Optical Thickness Data: Ground (OTTER)10.3334/ORNLDAAC/65

CampaignsOregon Transect Ecosystem Research Project

PlatformsField Site

SHIFT: Pseudo-invariant Targets, ASD Field Spectrometer Measurements, 202210.3334/ORNLDAAC/2446

CampaignsSurface Biology and Geology (SBG) High-Frequency Time Series

PlatformsField Site

Formatsmultiple

Optical Thickness Data: Aircraft (OTTER)10.3334/ORNLDAAC/61

CampaignsOregon Transect Ecosystem Research Project

PlatformsC-130 Hercules

SAFARI 2000 AOT and Column Water Vapor, Kalahari Transect, Wet Season 200010.3334/ORNLDAAC/719

CampaignsSouthern African Regional Science Initiative

PlatformsField Site

Optical Thickness Data: Fraser (FIFE)10.3334/ORNLDAAC/64

CampaignsFirst International Satellite Land Surface Climatology Project (ISLSCP) Field Experiment

PlatformsField Site

Optical Thickness Data: Staff (FIFE)10.3334/ORNLDAAC/66

CampaignsFirst International Satellite Land Surface Climatology Project (ISLSCP) Field Experiment

PlatformsField Site

Optical Thickness Data: Bruegge (FIFE)10.3334/ORNLDAAC/62

CampaignsFirst International Satellite Land Surface Climatology Project (ISLSCP) Field Experiment

PlatformsField Site

BOREAS RSS-11 Ground Sunphotometer Data10.3334/ORNLDAAC/297

CampaignsBoreal Ecosystem-Atmosphere Study

PlatformsField Site

BOREAS RSS-18 Sunphotometer Data over the SSA10.3334/ORNLDAAC/503

CampaignsBoreal Ecosystem-Atmosphere Study

PlatformsField Site

BOREAS RSS-12 Automated Ground Sunphotometer Measurements in the SSA10.3334/ORNLDAAC/299

CampaignsBoreal Ecosystem-Atmosphere Study

PlatformsField Site

KORUS-AQ Research Vessel (R/V) Onnuri Ship Data10.5067/ASDC/SUBORBITAL/KORUSAQ_RVOnnuriShip_Data_1

CampaignsKorean United States - Air Quality, Korea-United States Ocean Color Study

PlatformsR/V Onnuri

FormatsICARTT

INTEXB_GROUND10.5067/ASDCDAAC/INTEXB/0005

CampaignsIntercontinental Chemical Transport Experiment - North America

PlatformsVehicle, Field Site

SCOAPE R/V Point Sur Data10.5067/ASDC/SUBORBITAL/SCOAPE_RVPointSur_Data_1

CampaignsSatellite Coastal and Oceanic Atmospheric Pollution Experiment

PlatformsR/V Point Sur

FormatsNetCDF, ICARTT

PACE-PAX Ivanpah Playa Data10.5067/ASDC/SUBORBITAL/PACE-PAX/Ivanpah-Playa_1

CampaignsPlankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem Postlaunch Airborne eXperiment

PlatformsPermanent Land Site

FormatsCSV, PDF

SCOAPE-II R/V Point Sur Data10.5067/ASDC/SUBORBITAL/SCOAPE2_RVPointSur_Data_1

CampaignsSatellite Coastal and Oceanic Atmospheric Pollution Experiment

PlatformsR/V Point Sur

FormatsICARTT, NetCDF

SunphotometerSunphotometer

Overview

Instrument Details

Instrument Operation

Data Products

Sunphotometer
Sunphotometer