SAFARI 2000: Southern African Soil Types, 0.5-Degree Grid

106 soil units, based on Zobler's 1986 assessment of the FAO/UNESCO Soil Map of the World, define this dataset. It is a southern African subset of a global soil type map, regridded from a 1-degree to a 0.5-degree latitude/longitude resolution without increasing the underlying data resolution. The data is provided in ASCII GRID format for geospatial analysis.

Use Cases

• Regional climate modeling based on soil type and texture classifications.
• Land surface process simulation using the 0.5-degree geospatial grid.
• Comparative soil analysis for southern Africa using the Modified Zobler classification system.
• Validating newer soil maps against the foundational FAO/UNESCO-derived assessment.

Strengths

• Contains 106 distinct soil units, providing a detailed classification.
• Based on the foundational FAO/UNESCO Soil Map of the World as assessed by Zobler (1986).
• Cross-platform presence on Data.gov and NASA Earthdata signals established use and importance.

Limitations

• The 0.5-degree resolution was created by dividing 1-degree squares, not by increasing data resolution.
• Conflicting 'last updated' metadata: Data.gov lists 2026-03-12 (likely an error), while NASA Earthdata lists 1981-12-31.
• Key metadata like column names, row counts, and a clear license are missing from all sources.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Collection Method

Conversion and subset of the 'Global Soil Types, 0.5-Degree Grid (Modified Zobler)' dataset, itself derived from Zobler's 1986 assessment of the FAO/UNESCO Soil Map of the World.

Time Range

1986

Freshness

1981-12-31

Geography

Southern Africa