ASTER L1A Satellite Imagery with Three Spectral Resolutions

ASTER L1A provides reconstructed, unprocessed instrument data from the Terra satellite's three telescopes: Visible and Near Infrared (VNIR), Shortwave Infrared (SWIR), and Thermal Infrared (TIR). The dataset includes appended geometric and radiometric correction coefficients and features spatial resolutions of 15 meters for VNIR, 30 meters for SWIR, and 90 meters for TIR bands. It is produced by LPCLOUD for NASA and is actively maintained, with a noted update in March 2026.

Use Cases

• Land surface classification and change detection using the 15-meter resolution VNIR bands.
• Mineralogical mapping and geological studies leveraging the 30-meter SWIR spectral signatures.
• Surface temperature and thermal anomaly analysis, such as volcanic activity, from the 90-meter TIR data.
• Pre-processing for higher-level derived products by applying the provided geometric and radiometric calibration coefficients.

Strengths

• Provides data from three distinct spectral telescopes (VNIR, SWIR, TIR) with specific resolutions (15m, 30m, 90m).
• Includes appended metadata for geometric and radiometric corrections, with an update to calibration coefficient Version 5 (RCC V5) starting June 2021.
• Actively maintained and cross-listed on multiple authoritative platforms (NASA Earthdata, Data.gov), indicating ongoing curation.

Limitations

• SWIR data acquired from April 2008 onward exhibits known anomalies including value saturation and striping.
• Contains documented data acquisition gaps: a VNIR gap from November 28, 2024, to January 16, 2025, and a longer TIR gap from November 28, 2024, to April 15, 2025.
• Specific row counts, total size, and a complete column list are not provided by any source.

Provenance

Source

LPCLOUD for NASA, from the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument on the Terra satellite.

Collection Method

Reconstructed instrument digital numbers derived from acquired telemetry streams.

Time Range

Coverage spans from the instrument's launch through present acquisitions, with a noted operational gap in late 2024 to early 2025.

Freshness

2026-03-13 14:28:03.578425

Geography

Global coverage from the Terra satellite's orbit.