CERES EBAF: Top-of-Atmosphere and Surface Radiative Fluxes

From March 2000 to the present, this dataset provides monthly and climatological averages of top-of-atmosphere (TOA) and surface radiative fluxes, constrained by ocean heat storage. It is the CERES project's best estimate, combining data from Terra, Aqua, and NOAA-20 satellites with cloud properties from MODIS and VIIRS to model the full diurnal cycle. The product includes regionally complete clear-sky fluxes and basic cloud properties, processed using the Fu-Liou radiative transfer model and GEOS meteorological data.

Use Cases

• Analyzing Earth's energy imbalance trends based on TOA net flux constrained to ocean heat storage.
• Studying cloud radiative effects on climate using computed surface and TOA fluxes from the Fu-Liou model.
• Investigating regional and global trends in outgoing longwave and reflected shortwave radiation from monthly all-sky and clear-sky fluxes.
• Validating climate model simulations of atmospheric radiation using spatially complete, observationally-based flux estimates.

Strengths

• Represents a long-term, continuous record from March 2000 to the present, with data collection ongoing.
• Provides regionally complete clear-sky fluxes, unlike other CERES Level 3 products with data gaps.
• Integrates data from multiple satellite platforms (Terra, Aqua, NOAA-20) and geostationary satellites to model the full diurnal cycle.

Limitations

• Sources conflict on the specific edition (4.1 vs. 4.2) and the exact satellite timeline, indicating versioning discrepancies.
• Key metadata such as row count, file size, and specific column names are not provided across platforms.
• The license is vaguely specified as 'other-license-specified' without clear terms for reuse.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Collection Method

Collected by CERES Scanner instruments on Terra, Aqua, and NOAA-20 satellites, with cloud properties derived from MODIS and VIIRS imagers.

Time Range

March 2000 - Present

Freshness

2026-04-10 04:34:45.208375

Geography

Global