LANDMET Ancillary Monthly Mean Thermal and Microwave Emissivity Data

Global land surface emissivity data on a 1.0-degree-equivalent equal-area grid. This ancillary product provides climatological monthly means and standard deviations for broadband thermal infrared emissivity, emissivity at 10.5 microns, and microwave emissivities at four frequencies and two polarizations. The data is produced by NASA and sourced from ISCCP FD, IREMISS, and combined SSM/I and window IR analyses.

Use Cases

• Validate and calibrate land surface emissivity models based on the climatological monthly means.
• Analyze spatial patterns of thermal infrared emissivity based on the 1.0-degree-equivalent grid.
• Study microwave emissivity variations across frequencies and polarizations for land surface characterization.
• Assess standard deviations of emissivity values for uncertainty analysis in climate studies.
• Integrate ancillary emissivity data into radiative flux calculations for Earth system models.

Strengths

• Data is derived from multiple established satellite products (ISCCP FD, IREMISS, SSM/I).
• Provides both monthly mean values and standard deviations for emissivity parameters.
• Spatial data is organized on a consistent 1.0-degree-equivalent equal-area grid.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Combined analysis of satellite data from ISCCP FD radiative fluxes, ISCCP IREMISS, and SSM/I with window IR.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 01:20:51.733460; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Global land surface on a 1.0-degree-equivalent grid.