earthcarekit: A Python package to simplify working with EarthCARE satellite data

earthcarekit is an open-source Python package that provides comprehensive and flexible tools for downloading, reading, analysing and visualizing data from ESA (European Space Ageny) and JAXA's (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) joint satellite mission EarthCARE (Cloud, Aerosol and Radiation Explorer, Wehr et al., 2023). With this software, we aim to support the diverse calibration/validation (cal/val) and scientific efforts related to the mission and provide easy-to-use functions for new EarthCARE data users. Its key features include: A download tool that enables data access from ESA-hosted data dissemination platforms via scripts or the command line Unified reading routines for different EarthCARE products A range of utility functions for processing profile data from vertical atmospheric cross-sections from EarthCARE's two active instruments ATLID (atmospheric lidar) and CPR (cloud profiling radar), as well as from auxiliary data i.e., X-MET files (meteorological model data along the satellite track) Fast, publication-ready, and customizable plotting functions for vertically-resolved profile data and across-track swath data from the MSI instrument (multi-spectral imager) The software is under active development at Leibniz Institute for Tropospheric Research (TROPOS). While the initial release predominantly contains functions tailored to ATLID-related products, later versions will include new features also for other instruments and synergistic products, depending on user needs and contributions. The development can be viewed in the public GitHub repository at https://github.com/TROPOS-RSD/earthcarekit.