Exploratory Data Analysis of Pandora trace gas observations during OWLETS field campaign

Tropospheric ozone (O ₃ ) impacts human health and vegetation and plays a central role in the oxidation of chemically and climatically relevant trace gases. Due to the importance of O 3 and its precursors to air quality and climate change, it has received constant attention in the past decades from both the scientific and regulatory communities. To better understand and reduce the lack in the knowledge of the chemical gradient of coastal regions, NASA supported the OWLETS project during the years 2017 and 2018. In this study, we use exploratory data analysis (EDA) to summarize the chemistry regimes inherent to maritime complex regions, as southern (OWLETS I - July/August 2017) and northern (OWLETS II - June/July 2018) of the Chesapeake Bay region. Focusing on the possibility to formulate hypotheses that could lead to new insights, the EDA analysis used data from LIDAR (O ₃ ), Ozonesondes (tropospheric O 3 , relative humidity, and temperature), PANDORA trace gas spectrometers (NO ₂ and total O ₃ in the atmospheric column) and NASA C-23 Sherpa aircraft (CO, CO ₂ , H ₂ O, CH ₄ , HCHO, NO ₂ , NO, O ₃ , N ₂ O, VOCs). These observations are used as an input to summarize the data concisely, find new temporal and spatial patterns, differences, and other features that can address scientific questions regarding the chemistry dynamic. Also, identify inconsistencies and limitations, and how representative is the database to estimate the air quality in a maritime region, in particular, Chesapeake Bay.