S5P_L2__NP_BD3: VIIRS Cloud Data for Sentinel-5P Atmospheric Observations

Starting from August 6, 2019, this dataset provides cloud information derived from the U.S. Suomi NPP satellite's VIIRS instrument for observations by the European Sentinel-5P (S5P) satellite. The product contains pixel-level cloud classifications and sun-normalized radiance statistics for VIIRS bands M7, M9, and M11, generated for both nominal and scaled fields-of-view. It is designed to support atmospheric composition measurements by the S5P's TROPOMI instrument, which monitors gases and aerosols.

Use Cases

• Improving atmospheric trace gas retrievals from Sentinel-5P by accounting for cloud contamination using the VIIRS cloud classification data.
• Analyzing cloud spatial patterns and radiance statistics from VIIRS bands M7, M9, and M11 for meteorological studies.
• Validating cloud detection algorithms by comparing VIIRS classifications with other satellite or ground-based observations.
• Studying the impact of cloud cover extent on satellite measurements using data from the three scaled fields-of-view.

Strengths

• Provides high spatial resolution VIIRS cloud data (~5.5 km at nadir) specifically collocated with Sentinel-5P observations.
• Includes data for multiple VIIRS bands (M7, M9, M11) and four distinct cloud confidence classes (confidently cloudy, probably cloudy, probably clear, confidently clear).
• Dataset is maintained on multiple platforms (NASA Earthdata, Data.gov), indicating its importance and reliability for the research community.

Limitations

• Critical metadata is missing or conflicting: column names, row counts, and dataset size are unknown across all sources.
• The 'last updated' date shows a significant conflict, with one source listing 2026-04-09 and another 2019-08-06, creating uncertainty about data maintenance.
• The license is ambiguously listed as 'other-license-specified' or 'None', requiring users to investigate terms before use.

Provenance

Source

European Space Agency (ESA) and the Kingdom of the Netherlands (Sentinel-5P mission); U.S. Suomi NPP (VIIRS instrument). Processed by GES DISC.

Collection Method

Satellite remote sensing data from the TROPOMI instrument on Sentinel-5P and the VIIRS instrument on Suomi NPP, processed into a Level 2 product.

Time Range

From August 6, 2019 onward.

Freshness

2026-04-09 22:24:10.384060 (noted on two platforms, but conflicts with a third listing 2019-08-06)

Geography

Global coverage from sun-synchronous polar orbits.