VNP43D85: Nadir-Adjusted Surface Reflectance for VIIRS Band M7

VIIRS/NPP VNP43D85 provides daily, global Nadir BRDF-Adjusted Reflectance (NBAR) for the 0.865 μm wavelength band at a 1-kilometer resolution. This data product is generated by processing 16 days of observations, temporally weighted to the ninth day, to model surface reflectance as if viewed from directly overhead at local solar noon. The dataset is part of a suite designed for climate simulation models and has been decommissioned in favor of a newer version.

Use Cases

• Modeling surface albedo for climate simulations based on the global Climate Modeling Grid (CMG) format.
• Analyzing temporal trends in land surface reflectance using the daily, 16-day composite data.
• Correcting for view-angle effects in satellite imagery via the NBAR algorithm to standardize reflectance values.
• Studying surface anisotropy and BRDF characteristics over arid regions, as noted in the known issues.

Strengths

• Provides global spatial coverage in a Climate Modeling Grid designed for climate models.
• Offers daily temporal resolution synthesized from a 16-day observation window.
• Appears on multiple authoritative platforms (NASA Earthdata, Data.gov), indicating established use.

Limitations

• This Version 1 product was officially decommissioned on July 31, 2025, limiting its use for current research.
• Metadata is incomplete: column names, row counts, and exact file sizes are not provided across sources.
• Contains a known issue where an upstream aerosol flag reduces the number of acceptable observations used to characterize surface anisotropy.

Provenance

Source

NASA/NOAA Suomi NPP satellite, Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) sensor.

Collection Method

Derived from the VNP43MA4 product using a BRDF/Albedo/NBAR algorithm.

Time Range

Daily production, but specific start and end dates are not provided.

Freshness

2026-04-09 20:54:04.639559

Geography

Global