MASTER Airborne Multispectral Imagery and Land Surface Temperature Data

Sixteen NASA ER-2 aircraft flights collected Level 1B and Level 2 data products over multiple U.S. states and the Gulf of Mexico in July and August 2011. The dataset provides georeferenced multispectral imagery across 50 spectral bands and derived products including land surface temperature and emissivity. Data was generated by the MODIS/ASTER Airborne Simulator (MASTER) instrument and is managed by ORNL_CLOUD.

Use Cases

• Calibrating and validating satellite-derived land surface temperature models using the provided L2 temperature and emissivity data.
• Analyzing spectral signatures across 50 bands from visible to thermal infrared wavelengths for material classification.
• Studying regional land surface properties and thermal anomalies at approximately 50-meter spatial resolution.
• Integrating flight path and instrument configuration metadata with imagery for precise geospatial analysis.

Strengths

• Data includes calibrated radiance for 50 spectral bands covering a broad wavelength range from 0.460 to 12.879 micrometers.
• Collection spans 16 distinct flights over a diverse geographic area, providing multiple observational samples.
• Provides derived Level 2 science products, including land surface temperature and 5-band thermal infrared emissivity.

Limitations

• Specific row counts, file sizes, and total data volume are not provided by any source.
• Sources conflict on the last updated date, listing both 2011-08-18 and 2026-03 13.
• Column names and a precise data schema are not detailed in the available metadata.

Provenance

Source

NASA MODIS/ASTER Airborne Simulator (MASTER) instrument aboard an ER-2 aircraft.

Collection Method

Airborne remote sensing data collection during 16 pre-planned science flights.

Time Range

2011-07-19 to 2011-08-18

Freshness

2026-03-13 00:50:05.876944

Geography

Portions of California, Colorado, Wisconsin, Michigan, Louisiana, Mississippi, the central Mississippi River basin, and the Gulf of Mexico.