EPOXI Earth Observations: Calibrated Images for Exoplanet Analog Studies

NASA's EPOXI mission dataset contains calibrated, narrow-band filter images of Earth acquired by the Deep Impact High Resolution Visible CCD. Observations were taken on five occasions in 2008 and 2009 over approximately 24-hour periods to characterize Earth as an analog for extrasolar planets. Version 2.0 includes a horizontal destriping process and revised electronic crosstalk calibration.

Use Cases

• Analyzing Earth's spectral reflectance signatures based on narrow-band filter data at 350-950 nm
• Modeling time-dependent planetary brightness for exoplanet analog studies based on 24-hour observation sequences
• Studying the effects of lunar transit on Earth's observed brightness based on the May 2008 event
• Calibrating remote sensing instruments based on the applied destriping and crosstalk corrections

Strengths

• Images are calibrated and processed with a horizontal destriping process and revised crosstalk calibration
• Data covers five distinct observing periods in 2008 and 2009, each lasting approximately 24 hours
• Includes a specific documented event: the Moon transiting across Earth in May 2008

Limitations

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

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Acquired by the Deep Impact High Resolution Visible CCD during the EPOCh and Cruise 2 phases of the EPOXI mission

Time Range

Observations from 18-19 March, 28-29 May, 04-05 June 2008 and 27-28 March, 04-05 October 2009

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 08:08:50.812170; freshness should be verified

Geography

Images of Earth from a spacecraft perspective