PA7201 Earth Observation of the Atmosphere Assessment
- Subject Code :
PA7201
- Country :
Australia
Coursework 1: NASA Giovanni
During the COVID-19 pandemic we have seen considerable changes in atmospheric composition following dramatic changes in human behaviour during lockdowns and the corresponding changes in air pollution emissions. In this coursework you will use NASA Giovanni to explore some of these changes in atmospheric composition.
Step 1
Create global monthly maps to explore the differences between two months, 1) the month of April 2019 and 2) the month of April 2020 compared for four data products: 1) observed tropospheric nitrogen dioxide, 2) observed total column ozone, 3) modelled black carbon surface mass concentrations, and 4) one other variable of your choice. Create a word document with these 8 maps, making sure to label each map with a detailed caption stating the variable, date, and units, and credit the data source. Number the figures so you can refer to them later.
Step 2
After doing this, choose two regions to generate regional averaged time series of observed tropospheric nitrogen dioxide, observed total column ozone and modelled black carbon surface concentrations for each region, starting from January 2018 and running through September 2021. (You are welcome to start earlier to get a more informative time series, but it takes a lot of time for Giovanni to process daily data—for example, generating a daily time series of tropospheric NO2 for China from 1 January 2018 to the present might take about 5 minutes). Add each of these 6 plots to your document, and label each plot with clear captions specifying the variable, dates, units, and the region, and crediting the data source. Number the figures so you can refer to them later.
Step 3
Follow this up with a brief discussion interpreting these data, of 250 to 350 words (make sure to stay within that limit). Summarise what you observe in the spatial and temporal data, including highlighting any key changes you observe during the pandemic. Reference two or three scientific journal articles providing supporting information and/or putting your comments into context. Add a Bibliography. Note that the captions and the bibliography are NOT included in the word count.
