Terra and her instruments made an appearance in many of the presentations at the American Geophysical Union’s 46th annual Fall Meeting held December 9th – 13th. Scientists, researchers, students and educators gathered to present groundbreaking research and connect with colleagues.

The presentations showcased the versatility and interconnectedness of the instrument suite onboard Terra.

The presentation, Evaluating MOPITT and ACE Upper-Tropospheric Carbon Monoxide Retrievals with HIPPO In-Situ Measurements showed how MOPITT CO levels were validated and contrasted by the Fourier Transform Spectrometer on board the Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment (ACE-FTS), from the Canadian Space Agency and the Quantum Cascade Laser Spectrometer on the HIAPER Pole to Pole Observations experiment (HIPPO-QCLS).

In Comparing Land Surface and Air Temperatures of Urban Heat Islands Over the Contiguous USA the research team overlaid the National Land Cover Database Impervious Surface Area map over the local air temperatures from the Global Historical Climatology Network station distribution map, identifying over 300 urban settlements and comparing local air temperatures versus the land surface temperatures at night and at midday. They found that the observed temperature change was evident in both sets of data, however the magnitude differed.

Assessment of Urbanization Impact on the Continental US Surface Climate showcased the assessment of interactions between urban and different vegetation classes to understand vegetation control on urband heat islands hourly and seasonal dynamics.