ISCCP D2: Monthly Global Cloud Properties from Satellite Data

Monthly global cloud climatology data from 1983 onwards, produced by the World Climate Research Program's International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project. The dataset contains monthly averages of cloud properties, including mean diurnal cycle, distribution, and types, derived from polar and geostationary satellite radiances. It is provided on a 280 km equal-area grid.

Use Cases

• Parameterizing cloud effects in climate models based on global cloud distribution data.
• Analyzing the role of clouds in the Earth's radiation budget based on top-of-atmosphere and surface radiation properties.
• Studying the diurnal, seasonal, and interannual variations of global cloud cover based on the monthly averaged time series.
• Improving understanding of clouds in the global hydrological cycle based on cloud type and property data.
• Calibrating and validating satellite-derived cloud algorithms based on the normalized radiance dataset.

Strengths

• Global coverage derived from up to five geostationary and two polar orbiting satellites.
• Data spans from 1983 onwards, providing a long-term climatological record.
• Monthly averages are provided on a consistent 280 km equal-area grid.
• Project is the first of the World Climate Research Program, established in 1982.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data is aggregated to a 280 km resolution, which may not capture finer-scale cloud phenomena.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Satellite radiance measurements from multiple satellites are analyzed to infer cloud properties, then averaged monthly.

Time Range

1983 onwards

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 01:14:54.952079; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Global