Global Vegetation Greenness Index from AVHRR Satellite Data

GIMMS-3G+ V1.2 provides a 40-year global record of vegetation greenness measured by the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index. NASA assembled this dataset from multiple Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer sensors, applying corrections for calibration loss, orbital drift, and volcanic eruptions. It offers twice-monthly maximum NDVI values at a 0.0833-degree spatial resolution from 1982 to 2022.

Use Cases

• Analyzing long-term trends in global vegetation productivity using the 40-year NDVI time series.
• Mapping spatial patterns of greening or browning across continents at a 0.0833-degree resolution.
• Correlating vegetation health with climate variables using the corrected and calibrated sensor data.
• Studying the impact of major disturbances like volcanic eruptions on global ecosystems.

Strengths

• Offers a continuous 40-year temporal record from 1982 to 2022, enabling long-term trend analysis.
• Provides global spatial coverage at a consistent 0.0833-degree resolution.
• Incorporates corrections for known sensor issues like calibration loss and orbital drift.

Limitations

• Specific row counts, file sizes, and exact column names are not provided across platforms.
• License information is inconsistently reported as 'other-license-specified' on Data.gov but null on NASA Earthdata.
• The last update date conflicts between sources, with Data.gov showing 2026 and NASA Earthdata showing 2022.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Assembled from corrected and calibrated measurements from Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer sensors.

Time Range

1982 to 2022

Freshness

2026-03-13 01:49:47.357806

Geography

Global coverage