CERES CRS Aqua FM4 MODIS: Cloud and Radiative Flux Profiles

CER_CRS_Aqua-FM4-MODIS_Edition2B is a NASA CERES data product containing one hour of instantaneous cloud and radiative energy measurements from the CERES-FM4 instrument on the Aqua satellite. The product includes vertical flux profiles at four atmospheric levels and cloud parameters adjusted for consistency with a radiative transfer model. Data collection for this specific product is complete.

Use Cases

• Modeling atmospheric radiative transfer based on adjusted clear-sky and total-sky flux profiles.
• Analyzing cloud properties and their radiative impact based on cloud parameters mentioned in the description.
• Studying vertical energy distribution in the atmosphere based on flux profiles at the surface, 500-, 70-, and 1-hPa levels.
• Validating climate models using calibrated satellite observations of Earth's radiant energy system.

Strengths

• Data is part of the established CERES program, a key component of NASA's Earth Observing System.
• Fluxes and cloud parameters are adjusted for consistency with a radiative transfer model.
• Product contains vertical flux profiles evaluated at four distinct atmospheric levels.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Collected using the CERES-FM4 instrument on the Aqua satellite platform.

Time Range

Data collection for this product is complete; specific temporal coverage is not detailed.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 05:10:10.299582; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Global coverage from satellite observations.