VJ143DNBA3: Daily Global Land Surface Albedo at 1km Resolution

NOAA-20 VIIRS satellite data provides daily, 1-kilometer resolution maps of land surface albedo, specifically black-sky and white-sky albedo, using a 16-day composite weighted to the ninth day. This dataset is designed to ensure continuity with NASA's MODIS BRDF/Albedo product suite, employing the RossThick/Li-Sparse-Reciprocal kernel-driven model to correct for surface anisotropic effects. Researchers can use the provided model parameters to derive albedo for any solar angle or estimate instantaneous 'blue-sky' albedo.

Use Cases

• Modeling surface energy balance and climate feedbacks based on daily albedo values.
• Monitoring seasonal changes in land surface reflectance for vegetation and snow studies.
• Deriving albedo for any solar illumination angle using the provided BRDF model parameters.
• Estimating instantaneous actual (blue-sky) albedo from the black-sky and white-sky albedo layers.
• Assessing surface anisotropy and directional reflectance effects for sensor calibration.

Strengths

• Provides daily global coverage at a consistent 1-kilometer spatial resolution.
• Uses a sophisticated, documented RTLSR BRDF model to correct for surface anisotropic effects.
• Designed for direct continuity with the long-term NASA MODIS BRDF/Albedo data record.

Limitations

• Key metadata such as row count, file size, and specific column names are unavailable across all platforms.
• The dataset's license is ambiguously listed as 'other-license-specified' without clear terms.
• Relies on a 16-day composite for daily production, which may smooth over very rapid surface changes.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Collection Method

Processed from NOAA-20 Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) Day/Night Band sensor data.

Time Range

Daily production, temporal weighting uses a 16-day data window.

Freshness

2026-04-09

Geography

Global