VJ203IMG_NRT: VIIRS/JPSS2 Terrain-Corrected Geolocation Swath

NASA's VJ203IMG_NRT product provides near real-time, terrain-corrected geolocation data for the VIIRS instrument aboard the NOAA-21 (JPSS-2) satellite. It contains geodetic latitude, longitude, surface height, solar and sensor angles, a land/water mask, and a quality flag for each 375-meter pixel. This dataset is a fundamental input for generating higher-level VIIRS products and has undergone on-orbit validation to correct geolocation errors.

Use Cases

• Precise pixel geolocation for VIIRS I-band imagery based on derived line-of-sight vectors.
• Atmospheric correction and surface reflectance retrieval based on solar and sensor zenith/azimuth angles.
• Land/water classification and masking based on the included land/water flag.
• Sensor geometry analysis and validation based on corrected geolocation uncertainties.

Strengths

• Geolocation accuracy validated to within 75 meters (1-sigma) in both along-scan and along-track directions.
• Includes terrain correction using inputs like a digital terrain model, Earth ellipsoid, and geoid.
• Provides a fundamental input for deriving higher-level VIIRS I-band products.

Limitations

• Column names and specific data structure are not provided in the metadata.
• Dataset size and row counts are unknown across all sources.
• The license is specified only as 'other-license-specified', requiring further investigation.

Provenance

Source

NASA/LANCEMODIS, derived from the Joint Polar-orbiting Satellite System-2 (JPSS-2/NOAA-21) platform.

Collection Method

Algorithm uses satellite ephemeris, attitude data, sensor geometry, and terrain models to produce geodetic coordinates.

Time Range

Near Real Time (NRT), 6-minute swaths.

Freshness

2026-04-09 21:01:32.829746

Geography

Global coverage from polar-orbiting satellite swaths.