Global Daily Snow Depth Measurements From AMSR2 Satellite

AMSR2 satellite sensor data provides daily global snow depth measurements over land at a 0.1-degree grid resolution. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) produces this Level 3 dataset by averaging one day's worth of Level 1B and Level 2 observations. This product enables tracking of global snow cover distribution changes related to climate variation.

Use Cases

• Modeling seasonal snowpack accumulation and melt dynamics using the daily Snow Depth (SND) parameter.
• Analyzing long-term trends in snow cover distribution for climate change studies based on the global, gridded time series.
• Validating regional snow depth models or ground measurements by comparing with the satellite-derived SND values.
• Studying the difference in snow retrieval between ascending and descending satellite tracks, as means are calculated separately.

Strengths

• Global land coverage at a consistent 0.1-degree spatial resolution.
• Data is part of a long-term observation program from the GCOM-W satellite launched in 2012, supporting time-series analysis.
• Clear data flags with specific missing (-32768) and error (-32761 to -32767) values documented.

Limitations

• Snow depth over sea ice surfaces is not provided, limiting polar region analysis.
• The simple arithmetic mean calculation for daily values may smooth out sub-daily variability.
• Dataset uses specific projection methods (EQR and PS) which may require transformation for some analyses.

Provenance

Source

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

Collection Method

Derived from the AMSR2 sensor onboard the GCOM-W satellite, processing Level 1B and Level 2 data into daily averaged Level 3 products.

Time Range

Time series begins after the satellite's launch on May 18, 2012.

Freshness

Daily statistical period, with data generation likely ongoing.

Geography

Global land coverage.