MODIS/Aqua Clear Sky Radiance Bias Zonal Averages

Global satellite data from the MODIS/Aqua instrument provides 1-degree zonal mean clear-sky radiance biases for specific infrared and microwave bands. This Level 3 product, generated by the LAADS organization, calculates observed minus calculated radiance differences over eight-day periods, with separate processing for daytime land, nighttime land, and ocean. The data is used to correct radiance calculations in cloud top pressure algorithms.

Use Cases

• Correcting clear-sky radiance calculations in the CO2 slicing cloud top pressure algorithm.
• Analyzing systematic radiance biases across different geographic zones (land vs. ocean, day vs. night).
• Studying atmospheric conditions and sensor performance via zonal mean statistics for bands 31 and 33-36.
• Providing input data for climate models requiring bias-adjusted satellite-derived radiances.

Strengths

• Data is processed at a global scale with 1-degree zonal resolution.
• Separates analysis for daytime land, nighttime land, and ocean, improving regional accuracy.
• Uses a 5-zone moving average to create smoothed zonal means from 25-km input data.
• Cross-platform presence on NASA EarthData and Data.gov indicates established importance and curation.

Limitations

• Key structural metadata such as row count, file size, and specific column names are unavailable from all sources.
• Sources conflict on license information, with one specifying 'other-license-specified' and another listing 'None'.
• Data south of -60 degrees latitude combines day and night land due to poor clear-sky sampling, reducing granularity.

Provenance

Source

LAADS (Level-1 and Atmosphere Archive & Distribution System)

Collection Method

Derived from MODIS/Aqua sensor observations, processed into 8-day, 25-km radiance differences, then aggregated into 1-degree zonal means.

Time Range

null

Freshness

2026-03-13 00:25:24.250240

Geography

Global