North American Carbon Program Gridded Observations and Model Outputs

Standardized 1-degree gridded data for North America, containing five observation files and simulation results from 18 terrestrial biosphere and seven inverse models. The dataset was produced by the NACP Modeling and Synthesis Thematic Data Center (MAST-DC) for regional synthesis activities. It is stored in Climate and Forecast convention netCDF format with monthly or yearly temporal resolution.

Use Cases

• Comparing MODIS-derived GPP and NPP estimates with terrestrial biosphere model simulations.
• Analyzing forest biomass and area from FIA data alongside model-predicted carbon stocks.
• Evaluating crop NPP and agricultural land fraction from NASS data within carbon cycle models.
• Using inverse model simulations to constrain estimates of regional carbon sources and sinks.
• Assessing spatial and temporal patterns of carbon fluxes across North America at a standardized resolution.

Strengths

• Includes results from a large ensemble of 18 terrestrial biosphere models and 7 inverse models.
• Provides five key observational data products (MODIS GPP/NPP, FIA, NASS) for ground-truthing.
• Data is standardized to a consistent 1-degree spatial and monthly/yearly temporal grid.

Limitations

• Specific temporal coverage, row counts, and file sizes are not provided by any source.
• Conflicting last-updated dates: Data.gov lists 2026-03 -12, while NASA Earthdata lists 2007-12-31, suggesting potential metadata errors.
• License is specified as 'other-license-specified' without clear definition.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), North American Carbon Program (NACP) Modeling and Synthesis Thematic Data Center (MAST-DC).

Collection Method

Original model simulations and observation measurements were resampled to 1-degree resolution, interpolated to monthly/yearly steps, and reformatted to CF-compliant netCDF.

Time Range

null

Freshness

2026-03-12 23:33:24.126965

Geography

North American region.