Global Monthly Leaf Area Index Climatology from AVHRR GIMMS

Global 0.25-degree gridded monthly mean leaf area index (LAI) climatology averaged from August 1981 to August 2015. The dataset was derived from the AVHRR GIMMS LAI3g version 2 bi-weekly product, processed to remove missing values and calculate long-term monthly means. It is provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Use Cases

• Modeling carbon and water cycles using monthly LAI values across a global grid.
• Analyzing long-term vegetation trends and seasonality from the 34-year climatology.
• Validating satellite-derived vegetation products against a processed, long-term mean.
• Studying the relationship between climate variables and leaf area density globally.
• Providing a baseline vegetation state for earth system and biogeochemical models.

Strengths

• Covers a 34-year period (1981-2015), providing a stable long-term climatological baseline.
• Offers global coverage at a consistent 0.25-degree spatial resolution.
• Data is processed to remove missing and unreasonable values from the source product.
• Derived from the authoritative AVHRR GIMMS LAI3g version 2 satellite record.

Limitations

• Specific column names, row counts, and file sizes are not provided by any source.
• Sources conflict on the last updated date: one lists 2026-03-13 (likely metadata), while the authoritative NASA source lists 2015-08 31.
• The underlying license is specified as 'other-license-specified' without clear definition.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Derived from AVHRR GIMMS LAI3g version 2 bi-weekly data, regridded from 1/12-degree to 0.25-degree resolution, processed for quality, and averaged into monthly long-term means.

Time Range

1981-08 to 2015-08

Freshness

2026-03-13 01:52:55.888532

Geography

Global