Sciences and Exploration Directorate

Amir Hossein Souri

(Associate Research Scientist)

Amir Hossein Souri's Contact Card & Information.
Email: a.souri@nasa.gov
Org Code: 614
Address:
NASA/GSFC
 Mail Code 614
 Greenbelt, MD 20771
Employer: MORGAN STATE UNIV.

Brief Bio

Amir has worked extensively on atmospheric models enhanced through incorporating airborne and spaceborne remote sensing observations to optimize several prognostic inputs, such as emissions. In addition, he has studied the long-term trends of air pollution in East Asia and several major cities in the U.S. using a blend of information from models, in-situ, and satellite retrievals, and elucidated the efficacy of the trace gas retrievals to help better understand the chemical pathways of tropospheric ozone. Before joining NASA, he was a key member of NASA Aura and EDF's MethaneSAT/MethaneAIR projects involving the development of level-1 and synthetic data simulations at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. 


Amir is currently a PI of a novel product, ozone production rates from space, which will be released in the summer of 2025.

Research Interests

General Topics

Earth Science: Atmospheric Chemistry

I have pursued research on a range of diverse topics, including:

  • Inverse modeling/data assimilation including LETKF, 3Dvar, analytical non-linear inversion, multi-sensor/multi-species
  • Atmospheric modeling, including simulations of atmospheric chemistry over southeast Texas, CONUS, East Asia, and Europe; dynamics of hurricane Harvey and severe weather such as heatwaves
  • Idealized simulations such as 0-D chemical box modeling
  • Tropospheric ozone: trend and sensitivity to meteorology and precursors
  • Satellite-based tropospheric ozone production rate estimates
  • Observing System Simulation Experiment (OSSE) designed for upcoming satellites (e.g., MethaneSAT)
  • Data analysis and retrieval/model validation
  • Spatial heterogeneity modeling



Please check out my website for more detailed information about my research highlights, open-source packages I've developed, and useful links: ahsouri.com

Current Projects

Enhancing Long-Term Trend Simulation of OH Through the Synergy of Model Simulations and Satellites

Atmospheric Chemistry

First Estimates of Ozone Production Rates from Space

Remote Sensing

Positions/Employment

Associate Research Scientist

NASA/GESTARII - Remote

January 2023 - Present

Atmospheric Physicist

Harvard-Smithsonian Center For Astrophysics - Cambridge, MA

May 2018 - January 2023

Part of TEMPO, MethaneSAT, MethaneAIR, and several Aura Science Team projects

Research Assistant

University of Houston - Houston, TX

January 2015 - May 2018

Part of several international and state-level projects related to ozone and particulate matters

Education

Ph.D. (2018) Atmospheric Sciences, University of Houston, 2015-2018; Thesis: Constraining NOx emissions using spaceborne and airborne remotely sensed NO2 observations

M.S. (2014) Remote Sensing, University of Tehran, 2011-2014; Thesis: Water vapor modeling and atmospheric corrections on InSAR technique

B.S. (2011) Civil-Surveying and Geomatics Eng., University of Tehran, 2007-2011; Thesis: Hydrological modeling of precipitation and flood using geostatistical tool

Professional Service

Grants Review Panel: NASA

Journal Article Reviewer: Nature Communication, Geophysical Research Letter, Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, Atmospheric Environment, Atmospheric Research, Environmental Science and Technology, Scientific Reports, Remote Sensing, Remote Sensing Letters, International Journal of Remote Sensing, Asia-Pacific Journal of Atmospheric Sciences, Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene, Atmospheric Pollution Research, Arabian Journal of Geosciences, Resources, Conservation, and Recycling.

AGU Liaison, 2018, Washington D.C.

Awards

TEMPO Group Achievement Award, 2020, Awarded by NASA

Outstanding Academic Achievement in Atmospheric Sciences, 2017, University of Houston: for maintaining a high GPA and publishing numerous papers during the academic year.

Outstanding Academic Achievement in Atmospheric Sciences, 2016, University of Houston: for maintaining a high GPA and publishing numerous papers during the academic year.

Presidential Fellowship, 2015, University of Houston: for having a solid CV among Ph.D. applicants.

Grants

Long-term Maps of Satellite-Based Ozone Production Rates using OMI, OMPS, and TROPOMI HCHO and NO2 Observations via Empirical and Machine Learning Methods: Insights from NASA’s Air Quality Campaign

Aura-ACMAP - NASA - Awarded: 2023-05-01


Dates: 2023-06-01  - 2026-06-30

Amount 580,000

Improved assessment of recent trends in NOx and VOC emissions and ozone production sensitivity regimes using satellite data

Aura-ACMAP - NASA - Awarded: 2023-06-01


Dates: 2023-06-01  - 2026-06-01

Amount 160,000

Remote-Sensing of Surface-Level Ozone Sensitivity to Nitrogen Oxides and Volatile Organic Compounds

NASA Aura Science Team - NASA - Awarded: 2021-07-01


Amount 168,909

Algorithm maintenance for SAO standard OMI products (HCHO, BrO, OClO, etc.)

NASA Aura Science Team - NASA - Awarded: 2020-03-01


Amount 1,091,802

Corn Sweat: Contribution of Plant Transpiration during Heatwaves

Scholarly Studies Awards - the Smithsonian Institution - Awarded: 2020-01-01


Amount 74,425

Special Experience

NASA ACMAP (2), 2023-present, Joint inversion of NOx/VOC using multiple satellites

NASA ACMAP (1), 2023-present, PO3 estimate from space

EDF’s MethaneSAT/MethaneAIR, 2020-2023, OSSEs simulations (synthetic L1 and L2 products), geo-location corrections using computer vision techniques, denoising

NASA AURA (2), 2021-2023, Spatial heterogeneity, satellite-based HCHO/NO2 ratios

NASA AURA (1), 2019-2020, Application of OMI/OMPS satellites in atmospheric sciences

GIST, 2018, Development of a convective transport scheme for the CMAQ model

NIER, 2017, Integrating surface and satellite observations to provide an optimal estimate of the surface distribution of particulate matters

TCEQ, 2016, Biomass burning impacts on air quality in the U.S.: Evidence from the CMAQ model in 2012-2014

AQRP, 2015, Inverse modeling of NOx emissions in Southeast Texas using OMI NO2

Publications

Refereed

2024. "Trends and Interannual Variability of the Hydroxyl Radical in the Remote Tropics During Boreal Autumn Inferred From Satellite Proxy Data." Geophysical Research Letters 51 (8): [10.1029/2024gl108531] [Journal Article/Letter]

2024. "Level0 to Level1B processor for MethaneAIR." Atmospheric Measurement Techniques 17 (4): 1347-1362 [10.5194/amt-17-1347-2024] [Journal Article/Letter]

2024. "Ozone Anomalies in Dry Intrusions Associated With Atmospheric Rivers." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 129 (4): [10.1029/2023jd039949] [Journal Article/Letter]

2023. "Methane point source quantification using MethaneAIR: a new airborne imaging spectrometer." Atmospheric Measurement Techniques 16 (23): 5771-5785 [10.5194/amt-16-5771-2023] [Journal Article/Letter]

2023. "Decoupling in the vertical shape of HCHO during a sea breeze event: The effect on trace gas satellite retrievals and column-to-surface translation." Atmospheric Environment 309 119929 [10.1016/j.atmosenv.2023.119929] [Journal Article/Letter]

2023. "Quantifying the premature mortality and economic loss from wildfire-induced PM2.5 in the contiguous U.S." Science of The Total Environment 875 162614 [10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162614] [Journal Article/Letter]

2023. "Satellite remote-sensing capability to assess tropospheric-column ratios of formaldehyde and nitrogen dioxide: case study during the Long Island Sound Tropospheric Ozone Study 2018 (LISTOS 2018) field campaign." Atmospheric Measurement Techniques 16 (9): 2431-2454 [10.5194/amt-16-2431-2023] [Journal Article/Letter]

2023. "Validation of OMPS Suomi NPP and OMPS NOAA‐20 Formaldehyde Total Columns With NDACC FTIR Observations." Earth and Space Science 10 (5): [10.1029/2022ea002778] [Journal Article/Letter]

2023. "Characterization of errors in satellite-based HCHO ∕ NO2 tropospheric column ratios with respect to chemistry, column-to-PBL translation, spatial representation, and retrieval uncertainties." Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 23 (3): 1963-1986 [10.5194/acp-23-1963-2023] [Journal Article/Letter]

2022. "The Impact of Springtime‐Transported Air Pollutants on Local Air Quality With Satellite‐Constrained NO x Emission Adjustments Over East Asia." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 127 (5): [10.1029/2021jd035251] [Journal Article/Letter]

2022. "Dealing with spatial heterogeneity in pointwise-to-gridded- data comparisons." Atmospheric Measurement Techniques 15 (1): 41-59 [10.5194/amt-15-41-2022] [Journal Article/Letter]

2021. "Unraveling pathways of elevated ozone induced by the 2020 lockdown in Europe by an observationally constrained regional model using TROPOMI." Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 21 (24): 18227-18245 [10.5194/acp-21-18227-2021] [Journal Article/Letter]

2021. "Development and Implementation of a Physics‐Based Convective Mixing Scheme in the Community Multiscale Air Quality Modeling Framework." Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems 13 (6): [10.1029/2021ms002475] [Journal Article/Letter]

2020. "Response of Hurricane Harvey’s rainfall to anthropogenic aerosols: A sensitivity study based on spectral bin microphysics with simulated aerosols." Atmospheric Research 242 104965 [10.1016/j.atmosres.2020.104965] [Journal Article/Letter]

2020. "Quantifying the Impact of Excess Moisture From Transpiration From Crops on an Extreme Heat Wave Event in the Midwestern U.S.: A Top‐Down Constraint From Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer Water Vapor Retrieval." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 125 (7): [10.1029/2019jd031941] [Journal Article/Letter]

2020. "An Inversion of NOx; and NMVOC Emissions using Satellite Observations during the KORUS-AQ Campaign and Implications for Surface Ozone over East Asia." Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics [10.5194/acp-2020-220] [Journal Article/Letter]

2020. "Revisiting the effectiveness of HCHO/NO2 ratios for inferring ozone sensitivity to its precursors using high resolution airborne remote sensing observations in a high ozone episode during the KORUS-AQ campaign." Atmospheric Environment 224 117341 [10.1016/j.atmosenv.2020.117341] [Journal Article/Letter]

2019. "Five decades observing Earth’s atmospheric trace gases using ultraviolet and visible backscatter solar radiation from space." Journal of Quantitative Spectroscopy and Radiative Transfer 238 106478 [10.1016/j.jqsrt.2019.04.030] [Journal Article/Letter]

2019. "Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) Total Column Water Vapor version 4 validation and applications." Atmospheric Measurement Techniques 12 (9): 5183-5199 [10.5194/amt-12-5183-2019] [Journal Article/Letter]

2019. "Modeling Wildfire Smoke Feedback Mechanisms Using a Coupled Fire‐Atmosphere Model With a Radiatively Active Aerosol Scheme." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 124 (16): 9099-9116 [10.1029/2019jd030558] [Journal Article/Letter]

2019. "The Impact of the Direct Effect of Aerosols on Meteorology and Air Quality Using Aerosol Optical Depth Assimilation During the KORUS‐AQ Campaign." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 124 (14): 8303-8319 [10.1029/2019jd030641] [Journal Article/Letter]

2019. "Characterization of Regional Wind Patterns Using Self-Organizing Maps: Impact on Dallas-Fort Worth Long-Term Ozone Trends." Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology 58 (4): 757-772 [10.1175/jamc-d-18-0045.1] [Journal Article/Letter]

2018. "First Top‐Down Estimates of Anthropogenic NO x Emissions Using High‐Resolution Airborne Remote Sensing Observations." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 123 (6): 3269-3284 [10.1002/2017jd028009] [Journal Article/Letter]

2018. "Identification of chemical fingerprints in long-range transport of burning induced upper tropospheric ozone from Colorado to the North Atlantic Ocean." Science of The Total Environment 613-614 820-828 [10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.09.177] [Journal Article/Letter]

2017. "Quantifying the Impact of Biomass Burning Emissions on Major Inorganic Aerosols and Their Precursors in the U.S." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 122 (21): 12,020-12,041 [10.1002/2017jd026788] [Journal Article/Letter]

2017. "Remote sensing evidence of decadal changes in major tropospheric ozone precursors over East Asia." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 122 (4): 2474-2492 [10.1002/2016jd025663] [Journal Article/Letter]

2016. "Discrepancies between modeled and observed nocturnal isoprene in an urban environment and the possible causes: A case study in Houston." Atmospheric Research 181 257-264 [10.1016/j.atmosres.2016.07.009] [Journal Article/Letter]

2016. "Computationally efficient air quality forecasting tool: implementation ofSTOPS v1.5 model into CMAQ v5.0.2 for a prediction of Asian dust." Geoscientific Model Development 9 (10): 3671-3684 [10.5194/gmd-9-3671-2016] [Journal Article/Letter]

2016. "A 15-year climatology of wind pattern impacts on surface ozone in Houston, Texas." Atmospheric Research 174-175 124-134 [10.1016/j.atmosres.2016.02.007] [Journal Article/Letter]

2016. "Modeling the effect of relative humidity on nitrous acid formation in the Houston area." Atmospheric Environment 131 78-82 [10.1016/j.atmosenv.2016.01.053] [Journal Article/Letter]

2016. "Constraining NOx emissions using satellite NO2 measurements during 2013 DISCOVER-AQ Texas campaign." Atmospheric Environment 131 371-381 [10.1016/j.atmosenv.2016.02.020] [Journal Article/Letter]

2015. "Modeling the uncertainty of several VOC and its impact on simulated VOC and ozone in Houston, Texas." Atmospheric Environment 120 404-416 [10.1016/j.atmosenv.2015.09.029] [Journal Article/Letter]

2015. "Chemical condition and surface ozone in large cities of Texas during the last decade: Observational evidence from OMI, CAMS, and model analysis." Remote Sensing of Environment 168 90-101 [10.1016/j.rse.2015.06.026] [Journal Article/Letter]

2015. "Dust storm detection using random forests and physical-based approaches over the Middle East." Journal of Earth System Science 124 (5): 1127-1141 [10.1007/s12040-015-0585-6] [Journal Article/Letter]

2015. "Seasonal behavior and long-term trends of tropospheric ozone, its precursors and chemical conditions over Iran: A view from space." Atmospheric Environment 106 232-240 [10.1016/j.atmosenv.2015.02.012] [Journal Article/Letter]

2014. "A hybrid LS-HE and LS-SVM model to predict time series of precipitable water vapor derived from GPS measurements." Arabian Journal of Geosciences 8 (9): 7257-7272 [10.1007/s12517-014-1716-0] [Journal Article/Letter]

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