Get your Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres paper right the first time: a ready-made structure with the right abstract and citations, so editors see your science, not formatting slips.
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Authored by Sumalatha Gangadhar | Published on 17 August, 2026
Submitting to Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres goes smoothly when your draft already matches the journal's own rules. Editors screen new manuscripts against the Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres guide for authors before peer review, so formatting, structure, and required statements should be right on the first draft rather than repaired during upload. This template sets that structure up for you.
It is a manuscript shell aligned to Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres. It covers front matter, the abstract the journal expects, a body organized to the journal's article types, and a reference list in the journal's required style. Confirm current scope and article types on the Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres journal page before you draft.
Prepare the title, authors, affiliations, and ORCID iDs. Write the abstract to the journal's rule and word limit, organize the body to the article type, and apply the required reference style from the first citation. Complete every declaration (ethics, competing interests, funding, data availability) the Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres guide for authors lists, and cite figures and tables in order.
The common failure modes are formatting or reference style that does not match the guide for authors, missing required statements, and an incomplete portal checklist. Clear all three against the Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres guide for authors before you submit.
The shell mirrors what editorial staff check first: article-type fit, the abstract rules, required declarations, and the journal's reference style. For more detail see the author resources. When your draft is ready, upload it through the journal's submission system.
| Element | J Geophysical Res Atmospheres requirement |
|---|---|
| Abstract | Unstructured abstract required, must be less than 250 words, set as a single paragraph. Must state the nature of the investigation and summarize important conclusions. Must define all abbreviations, avoid reference citations (unless dependent on/directly related to companion/comment/reply paper), and must not include table or figure mentions. Same 250-word limit applies across all article types (Research Articles, Commentaries, Review Articles) |
| Main text | Research Articles: maximum 25 publication units (PU), where 1 PU = 500 words or 1 display element (figure or table). Word count excludes title, authors, affiliations, key points, keywords, text in tables (but not captions), and references. Commentaries: limited to 6 PU (recommended ~2000 words and 1-2 figures). Review Articles: maximum 30 PU. Text should be divided into numbered sections (1, 2, 3...) with subsections (1.1, 1.2...) up to four heading levels maximum |
| Declarations | Ethics approval/consent as applicable; competing interests; funding; data availability |
| Figures/tables | Publication-ready; cited in order |
| Supplemental | Upload separately when used |
| Keywords | Up to 5 index terms from the AGU Index Set required (terms ending in '00' not allowed). Additionally, authors may provide up to 6 free-form keywords (optional) to facilitate online searches. Keywords not included in word count |
| References | Name-date format (author-year system), not numbered references. Citations enclosed in parentheses, e.g., (Zhu et al., 2016) or as Zhu et al. (2009). All sources cited must be publicly available online or in print before acceptance; 'unpublished', 'in press', or 'personal communications' references not allowed. Formal citations required for data/software in Open Research section and reference list. Detailed citation style available in AGU's Style Guide |
| Peer review | Single-blind (single-anonymized): author names and affiliations are visible to editors and reviewers, but reviewer names are kept confidential from authors. AGU states: 'With the exception of AGU Advances, AGU journals follow a single anonymized peer review model where the names of the authors are visible to the editors and reviewers, but the names of the reviewers are kept confidential.' |
| Submission | jgr-atmospheres-submit.agu.org/submit |
Read the Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres guide for authors once before drafting and once before upload. Draft the abstract after results are stable. Set the reference style before adding citations. Keep a cover letter that states your contribution and fit to Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres in under a page.
Skim two or three recent J Geophysical Res Atmospheres papers to calibrate depth and figure style. Make the novelty clear in the first two pages. Deposit data and code when the policy on the Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres journal page requires it. Disclose any preprint or conference version with identifiers in the cover letter.
Do one focused pass against the Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres guide for authors: scope, length, reference style, required declarations, and figure quality. Then submit through the journal's submission system.