MODIS Terra Clear Sky Radiance Bias Zonal Bands

Global satellite data provides 1-degree zonal mean clear-sky radiance biases for MODIS bands 31 and 33-36. The Level 3 product is generated from eight-day, 25-km radiance differences, processed into 5-zone moving averages for daytime land, nighttime land, and ocean. This dataset from NASA's LAADS is used to correct radiance calculations in the cloud top pressure algorithm.

Use Cases

• Correcting clear-sky radiance inputs for cloud top pressure (CO2 slicing) algorithms.
• Analyzing systematic sensor biases across different latitude zones and surface types (land/ocean).
• Studying diurnal variations in atmospheric radiance using daytime and nighttime land data separations.
• Investigating polar atmospheric conditions where data from south of -60 degrees latitude is combined.

Strengths

• Data is processed into 1-degree zonal means with 5-zone moving averages, providing smoothed spatial analysis.
• Separates data for daytime land, nighttime land, and ocean, enabling type-specific bias studies.
• Covers specific MODIS thermal infrared bands (31, 33-36) critical for atmospheric temperature and moisture sounding.

Limitations

• Specific column names, row counts, and file sizes are not provided by any source.
• Sources conflict on license information, with one specifying 'other-license-specified' and another listing 'None'.

Provenance

Source

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

Collection Method

Derived from MODIS/Terra sensor observations, processed into eight-day, 25-km radiance differences before zonal averaging.

Time Range

Temporal coverage is not specified, but data is produced in 8-day periods.

Freshness

2026-03-13 00:18:41.595933

Geography

Global coverage with 1-degree zonal (latitude band) resolution.