SNF Leaf Optical Properties: Cary-14 Spectral Data

SNF Leaf Optical Properties: Cary-14 contains spectral reflectance and transmittance measurements for boreal forest canopy components. Data were collected from samples of needles, leaves, branches, moss, and litter in Minnesota's Superior National Forest during the summers of 1983 and 1984. These measurements across wavelengths from 0.35 to 2.1 micrometers provide foundational information for modeling canopy reflectance and studying intra-species variability.

Use Cases

• Calibrating remote sensing models based on spectral reflectance averages for Thematic Mapper Simulator bands.
• Analyzing optical property variability within a single boreal forest species.
• Comparing spectral signatures across different boreal forest canopy components like moss, litter, and foliage.

Strengths

• Provides detailed spectral data across a broad wavelength range (0.35 to 2.1 micrometers).
• Covers multiple boreal forest canopy components, enabling comparative analysis.
• Data collection was conducted over two field seasons (1983 and 1984), supporting variability study.

Limitations

• Metadata completeness is low: column names, row counts, and exact data structure are unknown.
• Conflicting last-update dates exist between platforms (1984 vs. 2026), creating uncertainty about data currency.
• The dataset's age may limit its applicability to modern sensor systems without careful validation.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Johnson Space Center

Collection Method

Samples collected in the field and analyzed using a Cary-14 radiometer in a laboratory setting.

Time Range

Summers of 1983 and 1984

Freshness

Last updated dates conflict: 1984-06-12 on NASA Earthdata vs. 2026-04-09 on Data.gov.

Geography

Superior National Forest, Minnesota, USA