MCD43D45: Daily Global Black-Sky Albedo for MODIS Band 4 at 1km Resolution

Global daily black-sky albedo data for MODIS band 4, produced at 30 arc-second (1,000 meter) resolution. The dataset is generated by NASA using 16 days of combined Terra and Aqua MODIS observations, temporally weighted to the ninth day. This Climate Modeling Grid product was decommissioned on July 31, 2023, with users directed to the Version 6.1 successor.

Use Cases

• Modeling land surface radiative properties for climate simulations based on the Climate Modeling Grid (CMG) product.
• Analyzing daily directional hemispherical reflectance (black-sky albedo) as a function of solar zenith angle.
• Assessing surface albedo changes over time using the 16-day rolling observation window described.
• Isolating high-quality data for specific science applications using the band-specific quality flags mentioned in the user guide.

Strengths

• Provides global coverage at a consistent 30 arc-second (1,000 meter) spatial resolution.
• Data is produced daily using a 16-day observation window from two satellite platforms (Terra and Aqua MODIS).
• Known issues from Collection 6, such as aerosol representation errors, were corrected in the Collection 6.1 reprocessing.

Limitations

• This specific Version 6 product was officially decommissioned on July 31, 2023.
• The description notes known issues in Collection 6 impacting downstream products, particularly over arid bright surfaces.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Produced daily using 16 days of Terra and Aqua Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data.

Time Range

Daily data, temporally weighted to the ninth day of a 16-day period.

Freshness

Last updated metadata date is 2026-03-12, but the underlying data product is decommissioned.

Geography

Global