NASA Logo in the header
Atmospheric Chemistry and Dynamics
Operational

Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment III - International Space Station (SAGE III - ISS)

The SAGE III instrument is used to study ozone, a gas found in the upper atmosphere that acts as Earth’s sunscreen. SAGE III - ISS will provide global, long-term measurements of key components of the Earth's atmosphere. The most important of these are the vertical distribution of aerosols and ozone from the upper troposphere through the stratosphere. In addition, SAGE III also provides unique measurements of temperature in the stratosphere and mesosphere and profiles of trace gases such as water vapor and nitrogen dioxide that play significant roles in atmospheric radiative and chemical processes.

Launch Date

January 2017

Class

Instrument

Website

The SAGE III instrument is used to study ozone, a gas found in the upper atmosphere that acts as Earth’s sunscreen. SAGE III - ISS will provide global, long-term measurements of key components of the Earth's atmosphere. The most important of these are the vertical distribution of aerosols and ozone from the upper troposphere through the stratosphere. In addition, SAGE III also provides unique measurements of temperature in the stratosphere and mesosphere and profiles of trace gases such as water vapor and nitrogen dioxide that play significant roles in atmospheric radiative and chemical processes.

Related Publications

2025. "Impact of water vapor on stratospheric temperature after the 2022 Hunga Tonga eruption: direct radiative cooling versus indirect warming by facilitating large particle formation.", npj Climate and Atmospheric Science, 8 (1): 192 [10.1038/s41612-025-01056-2] [Journal Article/Letter]

2025. "Stratospheric Water Vapor Beyond NASA's Aura MLS: Assimilating SAGE III/ISS Profiles for a Continued Climate Record.", Geophysical Research Letters, 52 (8): [10.1029/2024gl112610] [Journal Article/Letter]

2022. "SAGE III/ISS ozone and NO2 validation using diurnal scaling factors.", Atmospheric Measurement Techniques, 15 (20): 6145-6161 [10.5194/amt-15-6145-2022] [Journal Article/Letter]

2021. "Cloud and Aerosol Distributions From SAGE III/ISS Observations.", Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 126 (23): [10.1029/2021jd035550] [Journal Article/Letter]

2020. "Validation of SAGE III/ISS solar water vapor data with correlative satellite and balloon‐borne measurements.", Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, [10.1029/2020jd033803] [Journal Article/Letter]