MODIS/Terra: Daily Global Surface Reflectance at 250m Resolution

MODIS/Terra Version 6.1 provides daily global estimates of surface spectral reflectance for two 250-meter bands, corrected for atmospheric gases, aerosols, and Rayleigh scattering. The product includes quality assurance and observation layers and is produced by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Known issues and calibration improvements, such as polarization corrections, are documented for this version.

Use Cases

• Monitoring land surface changes based on daily 250-meter reflectance estimates
• Validating atmospheric correction algorithms using the provided quality assurance layers
• Integrating surface reflectance data with higher-resolution products for composite analysis

Strengths

• Data is corrected for atmospheric conditions including gases, aerosols, and Rayleigh scattering
• Version 6.1 includes documented calibration improvements, such as a polarization correction applied to reflective solar bands

Limitations

• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Satellite observation from the Terra MODIS instrument

Time Range

Daily coverage, with specific calibration updates noted for 2012-2017

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 00:10:32.499866; freshness should be verified

Geography

Global