MCD43D60: Daily Global White-Sky Albedo for Near-Infrared at 1km Resolution

Daily global data produced using 16 days of Terra and Aqua MODIS satellite observations, temporally weighted to the ninth day. The MCD43D60 Version 6.1 dataset provides white-sky albedo (bihemispherical reflectance) for the near-infrared broadband at a 30 arc second (1,000 meter) resolution, formatted as a Climate Modeling Grid (CMG). It is produced by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and was last updated in March 2026.

Use Cases

• Parameterizing land surface albedo in climate simulation models based on the Climate Modeling Grid (CMG) product.
• Analyzing near-infrared surface reflectance trends for vegetation or land cover studies using the white-sky albedo metric.
• Isolating high-quality full inversion results for science applications using the band-specific quality flags described in the user guide.

Strengths

• Daily temporal production using data from two satellite platforms (Terra and Aqua MODIS).
• Global spatial coverage at a consistent 30 arc second (1,000 meter) resolution.
• Version 6.1 incorporates specific calibration improvements, including RVS approach changes and polarization correction for reflective solar bands.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Each large file contains just one data layer, which may complicate multi-band analysis.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment for some applications.

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 coverage, temporally weighted to a central ninth day.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-12 23:39:10.601767; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Global