MODIS Daily BRDF and Albedo Quality Flags at 500m Resolution

MCD43A2 Version 6.1 provides daily quality information for BRDF and albedo retrievals from the MODIS instruments on NASA's Terra and Aqua satellites. The dataset is produced by the LPCLOUD organization using 16 days of data temporally weighted to the ninth day of the retrieval period. It contains band-specific quality flags and ancillary data for MODIS bands 1 through 7.

Use Cases

• Filtering high-quality albedo retrievals in the MCD43A3 product using the BRDF/Albedo band quality flags.
• Assessing temporal data coverage for surface reflectance studies by analyzing the days of valid observation field within the 16-day period.
• Masking snow-covered or water pixels in land surface analyses using the land water type and snow BRDF albedo information.
• Evaluating uncertainty in BRDF models for specific MODIS spectral bands (1-7) using the provided BRDF/Albedo uncertainty data.
• Identifying the source platform (Terra or Aqua) and local solar noon conditions for each quality observation to support sensor fusion studies.

Strengths

• Daily global production enables monitoring of rapid surface changes.
• 500-meter spatial resolution provides detail for regional-scale analysis.
• Quality flags are provided for seven specific MODIS spectral bands.
• Data integrates observations from two satellite platforms (Terra and Aqua).

Limitations

• The 16-day retrieval period may smooth over very short-term surface events.
• Known issues exist and require consultation with the MODIS Land Quality Assessment website.
• Specific sample size, row count, and data volume metrics are not provided.

Provenance

Source

NASA's Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instruments on the Terra and Aqua satellites.

Collection Method

Produced daily using 16 days of Terra and Aqua MODIS data, temporally weighted to the ninth day.

Freshness

Daily

Geography

Global