VNP43D07: VIIRS BRDF Isotropic Parameter for Band M3

VNP43D07 is a decommissioned Version 1 data product providing the isotropic model parameter for the Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function (BRDF) and Albedo for VIIRS band M3 (0.488 μm). It was produced daily at a 30 arc-second (1,000 meter) global resolution using a 16-day rolling composite, temporally weighted to the ninth day, and formatted for Climate Modeling Grids (CMG). The parameter is used with volumetric and geometric parameters to derive surface reflectance and albedo values for climate and land surface studies.

Use Cases

• Modeling land surface albedo for climate simulations based on the Climate Modeling Grid (CMG) format.
• Deriving surface reflectance anisotropy (BRDF) for band M3 using the isotropic parameter in conjunction with volumetric and geometric parameters.
• Analyzing temporal trends in surface radiative properties using the daily, 16-day composite product.
• Assessing impacts of aerosol contamination on BRDF/albedo retrievals due to known issues with upstream data flags.

Strengths

• Provides global coverage at a consistent 30 arc-second (1,000 meter) resolution suitable for climate models.
• Offers daily temporal granularity synthesized from a 16-day observation window to reduce gaps.
• Is part of a well-documented product suite with methodology detailed in an Algorithm Theoretical Basis Document (ATBD).

Limitations

• The dataset is decommissioned (as of July 31, 2025), directing users to newer Version 2 products.
• Metadata for row count, size, and specific columns is unavailable across all sources.
• Known issues exist where high aerosol flags in upstream data reduce the number of acceptable observations used as input.

Provenance

Source

NASA/NOAA Suomi NPP VIIRS instrument, processed by LPCLOUD.

Collection Method

Derived from the VNP43MA1 product using a BRDF/Albedo model; daily production uses 16 days of data.

Time Range

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

Freshness

Last updated metadata indicates 2026-04-09, but the product itself was decommissioned in 2025.

Geography

Global coverage.