# JPL GRACE and GRACE-FO Mascon RL06 Processing Chain
*processing-chain . standards*

Processing-chain anchor for JPL GRACE and GRACE-FO mascon RL06 data product provenance.

## Specifications
- **authority**: nasa-jpl
- **url**: https://podaac.jpl.nasa.gov/dataset/TELLUS_GRAC-GRFO_MASCON_GRID_RL06.3_V4
- **entity type**: standard
- **last verified date**: 2026-06-11
- **verified by**: agency-doc
- **claim status**: agency-sourced
- **subtype**: processing-chain
- **provider**: nasa-jpl
- **attributes**: {"kind":"processing-chain","authority":"nasa-jpl","url":"https://podaac.jpl.nasa.gov/dataset/TELLUS_GRAC-GRFO_MASCON_GRID_RL06.3_V4","description":"Processing-chain anchor for JPL GRACE and GRACE-FO mascon RL06 data product provenance."}
- **relevance**: in-scope

## Editorial
The JPL GRACE and GRACE-FO Mascon RL06 Processing Chain is operated by JPL (Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA) and distributed via PO.DAAC.[^podaac-jpl-mascon] It processes Level-1B inter-satellite K-band ranging measurements from GRACE (2002-2017) and GRACE-FO (2018-present) into monthly gridded terrestrial water storage anomalies.

The algorithm solves a least-squares inversion for 4,551 equal-area 3-degree spherical cap mascons distributed across the Earth's surface.[^grace-tellus-mascon] Explicit spatial and temporal regularization constraints reduce noise at the Level-2 processing step, in contrast to the post-hoc empirical filtering applied to spherical harmonic solutions. An optional Coastal Resolution Improvement (CRI) filter is available to reduce signal leakage at land-ocean boundaries in coastal mascon cells.[^nasa-earthdata-cri]

Outputs are monthly global terrestrial water storage (TWS) anomalies expressed as Equivalent Water Height (EWH, centimetres) on a 0.5-degree latitude/longitude grid (720x360 cells), together with gain factors for hydrology signal recovery.[^gee-mascon-v4] Release history: RL05M (first mascon release), RL06M v01, RL06M v02 (2019), RL06.1Mv03, and the current release RL06.3Mv04 (2024, DOI 10.5067/TEMSC-3MJC6).[^podaac-jpl-mascon]

## Compositional position
- JPL GRACE and GRACE-FO Mascon RL06 Processing Chain --[related]--> grace (missions)
- JPL GRACE and GRACE-FO Mascon RL06 Processing Chain --[related]--> grace-fo (missions)

## Sources
- [podaac-jpl-mascon] | JPL GRACE and GRACE-FO Mascon RL06.3Mv04, PO.DAAC | https://podaac.jpl.nasa.gov/dataset/TELLUS_GRAC-GRFO_MASCON_GRID_RL06.3_V4 | tier=agency-doc | accessed=2026-06-11 | published=2024-08-13
- [grace-tellus-mascon] | Monthly Mass Grids - Global Mascons (JPL RL06.3_v04), GRACE Tellus | https://grace.jpl.nasa.gov/data/get-data/jpl_global_mascons/ | tier=agency-doc | accessed=2026-06-11
- [gee-mascon-v4] | GRACE Monthly Mass Grids Release 6.3 Version 4 - Global Mascons, Google Earth Engine | https://developers.google.com/earth-engine/datasets/catalog/NASA_GRACE_MASS_GRIDS_V04_MASCON | tier=community | accessed=2026-06-11
- [nasa-earthdata-cri] | JPL GRACE/GRACE-FO Mascon CRI Filtered RL06.3Mv04, NASA Earthdata | https://www.earthdata.nasa.gov/data/catalog/pocloud-tellus-grac-grfo-mascon-cri-grid-rl06.3-v4-rl06.3mv04 | tier=agency-doc | accessed=2026-06-11

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Source: https://eo-atlas.org/standards/jpl-grace-mascon-rl06-processing-chain
Maintainer: SpectraWorks B.V. (CC-BY 4.0)