HEMCO data directories

On this page we describe the directory tree from which the HEMCO emissions component can read emissions inventories and other atmospheric data sets.

Overview

The HEMCO emissions component can read several types of emission inventories, as well as other types atmospheric data sets, such as production and loss rates, or concentration data. We have collated all of this data into a comprehensive directory tree structure. Each folder of the HEMCO data directory tree represents a particular emissions inventory or other data set.

At present, the HEMCO data directory tree resides on the Compute Canada and AWS s3://gcgrid bucket. We have created a package that will let you download this directory tree to your local disk storage space. For more information, please see the Downloading the HEMCO data directories section below.

Please see our list of recommended default emission inventories, which has been compiled by the Emissions and Deposition Working Group.

Downloading the HEMCO data directories

We recommend the following methods for downloading the HEMCO data directories, depending on which GEOS-Chem version you are using:

GEOS-Chem versions	Recommended download method	Alternate download method
12.7.0 and later	The GEOS-Chem dry-run option	Manual download from either Compute Canada, or Amazon Web Services s3://gcgrid storage
12.6.3 and prior	The hemco_data_download package	Manual download from either Compute Canada, or Amazon Web Services s3://gcgrid storage

--Bob Yantosca (talk) 17:07, 3 December 2020 (UTC)

HEMCO data directories corresponding to an emissions option

The sections below describe each of the data directories corresponding to a HEMCO inventory or extension. These are grouped in the order in which they appear in the HEMCO_Config.rc version that ships with GEOS-Chem 13.0.0.

In each of the tables below:

The Inventory column contains a link that describes each data set in more detail. Most of these links point to existing pages on the GEOS-Chem wiki.

The Data file info column points to the README files that are stored with each data set. Each README provides a list of the files contained within a given folder, information about the data contained in each file, and (often) a description of how the files were created.

The Path column shows the location of each data set, with respect to $ROOT, the top-level HEMCO directory. For example, on the Harvard disk server, $ROOT points to the directory /mnt/gcgrid/data/ExtData/HEMCO/.

The Default or optional? column contains this description

DEFAULT SETTING	Denotes that the data set is part of the standard emissions configuration for GEOS-Chem, that is: It is used in the GEOS-Chem 1-month and 1-year full-chemistry benchmark simulations, or It is used in one or more of the GEOS-Chem specialty simulations.
OPTIONAL SETTING	Denotes that the data set is not part of the the standard GEOS-Chem emissions configuration. But you can still use the data set in your research applications if you wish.

If use GEOS-Chem, then we recommend that you download the data sets that are listed as DEFAULT SETTING, as these form the standard GEOS-Chem emissions configuration. You are free, however, to use any of the data sets listed below. Your choice of data sets will depend on your particular research needs.

Regional inventories

Inventory	More info	Path	Data size	Default or Optional?
APEI Canadian emissions Data Years: 1989-2014	README	$ROOT/APEI/v2016-11/	68 MB	OPTIONAL SETTING
NEI2011_HOURLY Hourly CONUS emissions from NEI2011 inventory Data Years: 2006-2013	README	$ROOT/NEI2011/v2015-03	248 GB	OPTIONAL SETTING
NEI2011_MONTHLY_MEAN Monthly mean CONUS emissions from NEI2011 inventory Data Years: 1989-2014	README	$ROOT/NEI2011/v2017-02-MM	248 GB	OPTIONAL SETTING
MIX Asian anthropogenic emissions Data Years: 2008-2010	README	$ROOT/MIX/v2015-03	623 MB	OPTIONAL SETTING
DICE_Africa African emissions inventory Data Years: 2013	README	$ROOT/DICE_Africa/v2016-10	202 MB	OPTIONAL SETTING

Global inventories

The following subdirectories of the HEMCO directory tree contain inventories of anthropogenic and biofuel emissions.

Please also see list of species included in each of these global inventories and regional inventories.

Inventory	More info	Path	Data size	Default or Optional?
CEDS Community Emissions Data System Reference: McDuffie et al 2020, ESSD Data Years: 1970-2017	README	$ROOT/CEDS/v2020-08	73 GB	DEFAULT SETTING
CEDS_byFuelType Sectorial CEDS emissions Data Years: 1970-2017 Reference: McDuffie et al 2020, ESSD	README	$ROOT/CEDS/v2020-08	73 GB	OPTIONAL SETTING
EDGARv43 EDGAR global emissions v4.3 Data Years: 1970-2010 Used for sectors not included in DICE-Africa inventory Turning on this option will also include trash burning emissions of NOx, SOx, CO, NH3, BC and OC from Wiedinmyer et al. (2014) and NMVOC emissions from CEDS	README	$ROOT/EDGARv43/v2016-11	6.2 GB	OPTIONAL SETTING
HTAP HTAP global anthro+biofuel emissions Data Years: 2008-2010 NOTE: HTAP includes some regional emissions from other inventories. If you select HTAP you might not need to select the other regional inventories in HEMCO. See this document for more information.	README	$ROOT/HTAP/v2015-03	4.5 GB	OPTIONAL SETTING
GEIA_NH3 GEIA natural source NH3 emissions Data Years: 1990	README	$ROOT/NH3/v2014-07	8.1 MB	DEFAULT SETTING
SEABIRD_NH3 Croft et al NH3 emissions from arctic sea birds Data Years: 1990	README	HEMCO/NH3/v2018-04/	104 MB	DEFAULT SETTING
POET Anthropogenic EOH inventory Data Years: 1985	README	$ROOT/POET/v2017-03/	38 MB	OPTIONAL SETTING
TZOMPASOSA_C2H6 Tzompa-Sosa et al [2017] C2H6 emissions (overwrites CEDS to address underestimates) Data Years: 2010	README	$ROOT/C2H6_2010/v2019-06	536 KB	DEFAULT SETTING
XIAO_C3H8 Y. Xiao et al [2008] C3H8 emissions (overwrites CEDS to address underestimates) Data Years: 1985	README	$ROOT/XIAO/v2014-09	308 KB	DEFAULT SETTING
LIANG_BROMOCARB Liang et al VSL emissions Data Years: 2000	README	$ROOT/BROMINE/v2015-02	156 KB	DEFAULT SETTING
ORDONEZ_IONOCARB Ordonez et al Iodine emissions Data Years: 1985	README	$ROOT/IODINE/v2017-09	4.4 MB	DEFAULT SETTING
AEIC MIT aircraft emissions inventory Data Years: 2005	README	$ROOT/AEIC/v2015-01	2.0 GB	DEFAULT SETTING
DECAYING_PLANTS ALD2 and EOH emissions from decaying plants Data Years: 1985	README	$ROOT/ALD2/v2017-03	8.1 MB	DEFAULT SETTING
AFCID Anthropogenic PM2.5 dust source Data Years: 2015	README	$ROOT/AFCID/2018-04	4.4 MB	DEFAULT SETTING

Ship emissions

The following subdirectories of the HEMCO directory tree contain inventories of anthropogenic aircraft and ship emissions.

Inventory	More info	Path	Data size	Default or Optional?
CEDS_SHIP CEDS ship emissions (summed over all sectors) Data Years: 1970-2017	README	$ROOT/CEDS/v2020-08	73 GB	DEFAULT SETTING
CEDS_SHIP_byFuelType Sectorial CEDS ship emissions Data Years: 1970-2017 NOTE: Incurs additional data I/O overhead	README	$ROOT/CEDS/v2020-08	73 GB	OPTIONAL SETTING
HTAP_SHIP CO, NO, SO2 ship emissions from the HTAP inventory Data Years: 2008-2010 See this document for more information.	README	$ROOT/HTAP/v2015-03	4.5 GB	OPTIONAL SETTING
ICOADS_SHIP CO ship emissions from the ICOADS inventory Data Years: 2002	README	$ROOT/ICOADS_SHIP/v2014-07	4.2 MB	OPTIONAL SETTING
ARCTAS_SHIP SO2 ship emissions from the ARCTAS inventory Data Years: 2008	README	$ROOT/ARCTAS_SHIP/v2014-07	508 KB	OPTIONAL SETTING
CORBETT_SHIP SO2 ship emissions from Corbett et al inventory Data Years: 1985	README	$ROOT/CORBETT_SHIP/v2014-07	1.8 MB	OPTIONAL SETTING
NEI2011_SHIP Hourly coastal ship emissions from the NEI_2011 inventory Data Years: 2006-2013	README	$ROOT/NEI2011/v2015-03	248 GB	OPTIONAL SETTING
NEI2011_SHIP_MONMEAN Monthly mean coastal ship emissions from the NEI2011 inventory Data Years: 2006-2013	README	$ROOT/NEI2011/v2017-02-MM	248 GB	OPTIONAL SETTING

NOTES about ship emissions:

1. CEDS ship emissions are the default ship inventory in GEOS-Chem 12.1.0 and later versions.
   • Data files for CEDS ship emissions are stored with the other CEDS emission sector files in the HEMCO data path: $ROOT/CEDS/v2018-04/.
2. If CEDS emissions are turned off above then:
   • ARCTAS should be used over ICOADS, CORBETT, and HTAP for SO2
   • ICOADS should be used for CO and NO.
3. The NEI2011 ship emissions data only extends a few km from land. They are therefore coastal emissions inventories and not global emissions inventories.

Future emissions

Inventory	More info	Path	Data size	Default or Optional?
RCP_3PD Emissions for scenario RCP_3PD Data Years: 2005-2100	README	$ROOT/RCP/v2020-07/RCP_3PD	91 MB	OPTIONAL SETTING
RCP_45 Emissions for scenario RCP_45 Data Years: 2005-2100	README	$ROOT/RCP/v2020-07/RCP_45	93 MB	OPTIONAL SETTING
RCP_60 Emissions for scenario RCP_60 Data Years: 2005-2100	README	$ROOT/RCP/v2020-07/RCP_60	92 MB	OPTIONAL SETTING
RCP_85 Emissions for scenario RCP_85 Data Years: 2005-2100	README	$ROOT/RCP/v2020-07/RCP_85	93 MB	OPTIONAL SETTING

Biomass burning emissions (not implemented as extensions)

NOTE: Some biomass burning inventories are implemented as HEMCO extensions. See the Emissions implemented as HEMCO extensions below for more information.

The following subdirectories of the HEMCO directory tree contain inventories of biomass burning emissions.

Inventory	More info	Path	Data size	Default or Optional?
GFAS CAMS Global Fire Assimilation System estimated emissions Injection height info is taken from ECMWF fire observations ECMWF operational weather forecasts. Data Years: 2003-2020	README	$ROOT/GFAS/v2018-09	49 GB	OPTIONAL SETTING
QFED Quick Fire Emissions Database (v2.5r1) Data Years: 2003-2020	README	$ROOT/QFED/v2018-07	247 GB	OPTIONAL SETTING

Offline grid-independent emissions

Offline grid-independent emissions were generated by running high-resolution (0.25°x0.3125° for GEOS-FP, 0.5°x0.625° for MERRA-2) simulations using the HEMCO standalone and online emissions from the HEMCO extensions.

Inventory	More info	Path	Data size	Default or Optional?
OFFLINE_DUST Dust emissions archived from HEMCO standalone simulations Data Years: 1980-2020 NOTE: If you use OFFLINE_DUST, you must turn off both DustDead and DustGinoux extensions.	README	$ROOT/OFFLINE_DUST/v2019-01	18 GB	DEFAULT SETTING
OFFLINE_BIOGENICVOC Biogenic VOC emissions generated from HEMCO standalone simulations Data Years: 1980-2020 NOTE: The MEGAN extension should remain on so that it can calculate biogenic emissions for some species not in this inventory.	README	$ROOT/OFFLINE_BIOVOC/v2019-01	1400 GB	DEFAULT SETTING
OFFLINE_SEASALT Sea salt emissions generated from HEMCO standalone simulations Data Years: 1980-2020 NOTE: If you use OFFLINE_SEASALT, turn off the SeaSalt extension.	README	$ROOT/OFFLINE_SEASALT/v2019-01	876 GB	DEFAULT SETTING
OFFLINE_SOILNOX Soil NOx emissions generated from HEMCO standalone simulations Data Years: 1980-2020 NOTE: If you use OFFLINE_SOILNOX, you must turn off the SoilNOx extension.	README	$ROOT/OFFLINE_SOILNOX/v2019-01	48 GB	DEFAULT SETTING

Non-emissions data

The following subdirectories of the HEMCO directory tree input data contains non-emissions data sets. Most of these are used as inputs to GEOS-Chem's chemistry modules (i.e. photolysis, stratospheric chemistry, etc.).

Inventory	More info	Path	Data size	Default or Optional?
UVALBEDO Hermann & Celarier [1997] UV surface albedo data Data years: 1997 (1985 timestamps) Needed for FAST-JX photolysis	README	$ROOT/UVALBEDO/v2019-06	476 KB	DEFAULT SETTING
CCM_STRAT_Bry Stratospheric Bry from the CCM model Data years: 2007	README	$ROOT/STRAT/v2015-01/Bry	385 MB	DEFAULT SETTING
GMI_STRAT_OH OH concentration (v/v) from the GMI model Data years: 2005	README	$ROOT/GMI/v2015-02	16 GB	DEFAULT SETTING
GMI_PROD_LOSS P & L rates from the GMI model Data years: 2005				DEFAULT SETTING
UCX_PROD_LOSS P & L rates from GEOS-Chem simulations with UCX Data years: 2013	README	$ROOT/UCX/v2018-02	12 GB	OPTIONAL SETTING
OMOC_RATIO Spatially varying OM/OC ratios for SOA species Data years: 2010 NOTE: OMOC_RATIO is controlled by a switch in input.geos (default is OFF)	README	$ROOT/OMOC/v2018-01	8.6 MB	OPTIONAL SETTING
GMD_SFC_CH4 NOAA GMD monthly mean surface methane distributions Data years: 1979-2020	[1]	$ROOT/NOAA_GMD/v2018-01	85 MB	DEFAULT SETTING
CMIP6_SFC_CH4 CMIP6 monthly mean surface methane distributions Data years: 1750-1978	[2]	$ROOT/CMIP6/v2019-12	85 MB	OPTIONAL SETTING
OLSON_LANDMAP Masks for each Olson land type Data years: 1985	README	$ROOT/OLSON_MAP/v2019-02	1.9 MB	DEFAULT SETTING
YUAN_MODIS_LAI Yuan-processed MODIS XLAI (leaf area index per land type) Data years: 2005-2016	README	$ROOT/Yuan_XLAI/v2019-03	203 MB	DEFAULT SETTING
RRTMG RRTMG radiative transfer model input data (e.g. surface reflectances etc.)	README	$ROOT/RRTMG/v2018-11	19 MB	OPTIONAL SETTING
SfcVMR Latitudinally and monthly resolved fixed surface concentrations for long-lived organohalogen species from GMI and UCX (1959-2099) Data years: 1750-2014	README	HEMCO/SfcFix/v2019-12	851 MB	DEFAULT SETTING
OCEAN_O3_DRYDEP Ozone deposition to the ocean Data years: 1985	README	HEMCO/OCEAN_O3_DRYDEP/v2020-02	388 MB	DEFAULT SETTING

Emissions implemented as HEMCO extensions

The following subdirectories of the HEMCO directory tree contain input data used by various HEMCO extensions. These HEMCO extensions compute emissions for quantities that depend on meteorological variables (e.g. emissions from lighting, biogenic processes, etc.).

HEMCO Extension	More info	Path	Data size	Default or Optional?
SeaFlux Ocean exchange	README1 README2 README3	$ROOT/ACET/v2014-07 $ROOT/ALD2/v2017-03 $ROOT/DMS/v2015-07	5.8 MB	DEFAULT SETTING
ParaNOx PARANOX ship plume model, computes the aging of emissions in ship exhaust plumes.	README	$ROOT/PARANOX/v2015-02	162 MB	DEFAULT SETTING
LightNOx Computes NO from lightning May be used instead of OFFLINE_LIGHTNING	README	$ROOT/LIGHTNOX/v2017-09	32 MB	DEFAULT SETTING
SoilNOx Hudman et al [2012] soil NOx emissions algorithm NOTE: If you use SoilNOx, turn off OFFLINE_SOILNOX.	README	$ROOT/SOILNOX/v2014-07	730 MB	OPTIONAL SETTING
DustDead DEAD dust model (cf. Zender) NOTE: If you use DustDead, turn off OFFLINE_DUST.	README	$ROOT/DUST_DEAD/2014-07	712 KB	OPTIONAL SETTING
DustGinoux Ginoux et al dust model NOTE: If you use DustDead, turn off OFFLINE_DUST.	README	$ROOT/DUST_GINOUX/2014-07	36 KB	OPTIONAL SETTING
SeaSalt Sea salt emissions NOTE: If you use SeaSalt, turn off OFFLINE_SEASALT.	Does not have an associated data directory			OPTIONAL SETTING
MEGAN MEGAN v2.1 biogenic emissions	README	$ROOT/MEGAN/v2018-05	12 MB	DEFAULT SETTING
GFED4 GFED4 biomass burning v4.1, data directory contains dry matter and other inputs Data Years: 1988-2019 (monthly-mean) Daily & hourly emissions are possible with the use of scale factors.	README	$ROOT/GFED4/v2020-02	296 MB	DEFAULT SETTING
FINN FINN biomass burning (v1.5) Data Years: 2002-2016	README	$ROOT/FINN/v2015-02	1.2 GB	OPTIONAL SETTING
DustAlk Computes dust alkalinity (for aciduptake simulation only)	Does not have an associated data directory.			OPTIONAL SETTING
Volcano Volcanic SO2 emissions from Aerocom Data Years: 1978-2020	README	$ROOT/VOLCANO/v2019-08	63 MB	DEFAULT SETTING
Inorg_Iodine Inorganic iodine emissions (HOI, I2)	Does not have an associated data directory.			DEFAULT SETTING

Other HEMCO data directories

In each of the tables below:

The Directory column contains a description of the directory and its contents.

The More info column points to the README files that are stored with each data set.

The Path column shows the location of each data set, with respect to $ROOT, the top-level HEMCO directory. For example, on the Harvard disk server, $ROOT points to the directory /mnt/gcgrid/data/ExtData/HEMCO/.

The Used by? column lists in which context the data in each directory is used.

HEMCO scale factors, masks, and other data

The following subdirectories of the HEMCO directory tree contain scale factors for various emissions inventories

Directory	More info	Path	Data size	Used by?
AnnualScalar Directory containing annual scale factors	README	$ROOT/AnnualScalar/v2014-07	3.0 MB	Only needed for the following inventories: HTAP MIX XIAO_C3H8
NEI2005 Directory containing NEI2005 scale factors	README	$ROOT/NEI2005/v2014-09	8.1 MB	Only needed for the following inventories: NEI2011_HOURLY NEI2011_MONMEAN
MASKS Directory containing mask files for regional emission inventories	README	$ROOT/MASKS/v2014-07	148 MB	Needed for regional emissions inventories
COUNTRY_ID Directory containing ISO ALPHA-3 standard country codes on an 0.1° x 0.1° grid. HEMCO can use these ID's to apply country-level scale factors to any emissions field.	README	$ROOT/COUNTRY_ID/v2015-04	15 MB	Not currently used, but is available for research needs
TIMEZONES Timezone offsets from UTC, needed to compute emissions that depend on local solar time	README	$ROOT/TIMEZONES/v2015-02	264 KB	This data will always be read by HEMCO, regardless of simulation type

GEOS-Chem specialty simulation data

The following subdirectories of the HEMCO directory tree input data (emissions, oxidants, etc.) for use with the GEOS-Chem specialty simulations (i.e. those that do not use the fullchem mechanism). If you do not regularly use these simulations, you may choose not to download these data directories.

Directory	More info	Path	Data size	Used by?
CH4 Various data	README1 README2	$ROOT/CH4/v2017-10 $ROOT/CH4/v2014-09	6.6 GB	CH4 and tagCH4 specialty simulations
CO2 Various data sources	README1 README2 README3 README4 README5 README6	$ROOT/CO2/v2015-04 $ROOT/CO2/v2015-04/BIO/ $ROOT/CO2/v2015-04/BIOFUEL/ $ROOT/CO2/v2015-04/CHEM/ $ROOT/CO2/v2015-04/FOSSIL/ $ROOT/CO2/v2015-04/OCEAN/	1.5 GB	CO2 simulation
CHLA Oceanic Chlorophyll-A	README	$ROOT/CHLA/v2014-07	2.0 MB	Mercury simulation
MERCURY Various emission inventories & data	README1 README2 README3 README4 README5 README6 README7 README8 README9 README10	$ROOT/MERCURY/v2014-09 $ROOT/MERCURY/v2014-09/ARTISANAL $ROOT/MERCURY/v2014-09/BrOx $ROOT/MERCURY/v2014-09/Hg2_PARTITION $ROOT/MERCURY/v2014-09/JVALUES $ROOT/MERCURY/v2014-09/NATURAL $ROOT/MERCURY/v2014-09/NEI2005 $ROOT/MERCURY/v2014-09/OCEAN $ROOT/MERCURY/v2014-09/SOIL $ROOT/MERCURY/v2014-09/STREETS	3.0 GB	Mercury simulation
O3 Archived O3 fields	README	$ROOT/O3/v2014-09	130 MB	Hg and tagHg simulations POPs simulation
OFFLINE_AEROSOL Archived concentrations and P/L rates	README	$ROOT/OFFLINE_AEROSOL/v2014-09	165 MB	Aerosol-only simulation
OH Archived OH fields	README1 README2	$ROOT/OH/v2014-09 $ROOT/OH/v2014-09/v5-07-08 $ROOT/OH/v2014-09/v7-02-03.GMI	95 MB	Aerosol-only simulation CH4 and tagCH4 simulations Hg and tagHg simulations POPs simulation Tagged CO simulation
OXIDANTS Archived P(H2O2)	README	$ROOT/OXIDANTS/v2014-07	32 MB	Aerosol-only simulation
POPs Various data	README	$$ROOT/POPs/v2015-08	809 MB	POPs simulation
TAGGED_CO Archived P(CO)	README	$ROOT/TAGGED_CO/v2017-04	79 MB	Tagged CO simulation
TAGGED O3 Archived P(O3) and L(O3)	README	$ROOT/TAGGED_O3/v2014-09	374 MB	Tagged O3 simulation

Submitting new data for use with HEMCO

If you have a new emissions inventory or other atmospheric data set that you would like to add to the HEMCO data directories, then please contact the GEOS-Chem Support Team. Data files must be in COARDS-compliant or CF-compliant netCDF format. Please see the following pages for more information:

1. Preparing data files for use with HEMCO
2. Submitting updates for inclusion in GEOS-Chem

--Bob Yantosca (talk) 22:24, 14 January 2020 (UTC)