MODIS/Aqua: Gap-Filled Evapotranspiration Data at 500m Resolution

An 8-day composite dataset of global evapotranspiration and latent heat flux produced at 500 meter resolution. The data is generated by NASA using a gap-filled algorithm based on the Penman-Monteith equation, incorporating MODIS remote sensing data and meteorological reanalysis. The final, gap-filled product is released at the end of each calendar year.

Use Cases

• Modeling regional water balance based on composited evapotranspiration (ET) layers.
• Analyzing vegetation stress and drought impacts based on gap-filled Leaf Area Index (LAI) inputs.
• Studying energy flux dynamics using average latent heat (LE) values.
• Comparing actual and potential evapotranspiration (PET) for agricultural water management.

Strengths

• Spatial resolution increased to 500 meters from 1,000 meters in the previous version.
• Algorithm uses gap-filling via linear interpolation to clean poor-quality LAI/FPAR inputs.
• Product includes layers for ET, LE, PET, PLE, and a quality control layer.

Limitations

• Data is not available in near-real time; it is generated only at the end of each year.
• The last acquisition period of each year is a 5- or 6-day composite, not a full 8-day period.
• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Algorithm based on the Penman-Monteith equation using MODIS remote sensing and meteorological reanalysis data.

Geography

Global