CERES MODIS Cloud Retrievals: Monthly Gridded Averages by Cloud Type

CERES MODIS-derived cloud properties are not the official NASA MODIS cloud retrievals but are based on the CERES cloud working group's methods. The data product contains monthly and 3-hourly gridded regional mean cloud properties stratified by pressure, optical depth, and phase across 18 cloud types, with coverage from pole to pole. It is produced by NASA's CERES program, a key Earth Observing System component following the ERBE mission, with instruments launched on satellites like Terra and Aqua.

Use Cases

• Analyze cloud fraction distributions based on the 42 cloud type classifications similar to the ISCCP D1 product.
• Model regional cloud radiative forcing based on monthly gridded averages of cloud properties.
• Study diurnal cloud variability using the monthly 3-hourly (GMT-based) time stratification.
• Validate or compare climate models using cloud properties stratified by pressure, optical depth, and phase.
• Investigate polar cloud coverage trends leveraging the dataset's pole-to-pole spatial coverage.

Strengths

• Data collection for this product is complete, indicating a finalized dataset.
• Cloud properties are stratified by 18 cloud types based on pressure, optical depth, and phase.
• Provides separate daytime and nighttime datasets for both Terra-MODIS and Aqua-MODIS platforms.
• Coverage from pole to pole ensures global spatial representation.

Limitations

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

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) CERES program.

Collection Method

Collected using the CERES-FM2 and MODIS instruments on the Terra satellite platform, with input from the Single Scanner Footprint TOA/Surface Fluxes and Clouds (SSF) data product.

Time Range

Each file covers a single month; specific temporal range is not provided.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 05:05:16.843961; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Global coverage from pole to pole.