Overview: Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Data Sets
Directly measured and continuous records of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) extend back to 1958. CO2 has also been measured in ancient air samples trapped in ice cores, and these records extend back hundreds of thousands of years. More recently, CO2 is being sampled by satellites providing global data to researchers.
Cite this page
Acknowledgement of any material taken from or knowledge gained from this page is appreciated:
National Center for Atmospheric Research Staff (Eds). Last modified "The Climate Data Guide: Overview: Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Data Sets.” Retrieved from https://climatedataguide.ucar.edu/climate-data/overview-carbon-dioxide-co2-data-sets on 2026-05-12.
Citation of datasets is separate and should be done according to the data providers' instructions. If known to us, data citation instructions are given in the Data Access section, above.
Acknowledgement of the Climate Data Guide project is also appreciated:
Schneider, D. P., C. Deser, J. Fasullo, and K. E. Trenberth, 2013: Climate Data Guide Spurs Discovery and Understanding. Eos Trans. AGU, 94, 121–122, https://doi.org/10.1002/2013eo130001
Key Figures
Monthly (blue) and annual (red) CO2 at Muana Loa (1958-2011). (Climate Data Guide; D. Shea)
CO2 for February, 2012 derived from Level 3 version 5.9 AIRS and MSU retrievals. Ascending and descending nodes were combined. Top: average CO2; middle: standard deviation of observations; bottom: the observation count. (Climate Data Guide; D. Shea)
400,000-year Vostok Record: Source: http://cdiac.ornl.gov/trends/co2/ice_core_co2.html
Other Information
- R.F. Keeling, S.C. Piper, A.F. Bollenbacher and J.S. Walker Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide Record from Mauna Loa.
- Chahine1, M.T. et al (2008): Satellite remote sounding of mid-tropospheric CO2. Geophys. Res. Lett., 35, L17807
- Lüthi, D. et al. (2008): High-resolution carbon dioxide concentration record 650,000-800,000 years before present. Nature 453: 379-382
- Atmospheric Trace Gases » Carbon Dioxide (CO2) » Ice Cores 800,000-year Ice-Core Records of Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide (CO2) This page introduces Antarctic ice-core records of carbon dioxide (CO2) that now extend back 800,000 years at Dome C and over 40