VNP43D72: VIIRS White-Sky Albedo for Band M7 Daily Global 1km

VIIRS/NPP VNP43D72 provides daily white-sky albedo for the 0.865 μm band at a 1,000-meter resolution, synthesized from 16 days of satellite observations. This product is part of a global Climate Modeling Grid suite designed for simulating surface reflectance in Earth system models. It includes albedo for nine VIIRS moderate bands and the Day/Night Band, with methodology detailed in an Algorithm Theoretical Basis Document.

Use Cases

• Parameterizing land surface reflectance in climate simulation models based on the Climate Modeling Grid (CMG) format.
• Analyzing temporal trends in surface albedo using the daily, 16-day composite data product.
• Comparing white-sky albedo (bihemispherical reflectance) with black-sky albedo for VIIRS band M7 (0.865 μm).
• Assessing surface anisotropy and radiative properties for the visible, near-infrared, and shortwave spectral bands.

Strengths

• Provides global coverage at a consistent 30 arc-second (1km) Climate Modeling Grid resolution.
• Data is produced daily using a temporally weighted 16-day composite, improving signal stability.
• Cross-platform presence on Data.gov and NASA EarthData indicates established importance and reliability.

Limitations

• Metadata completeness is low: column names, row counts, and exact file sizes are unknown across all sources.
• Each product file contains only one data layer due to large file size, which may complicate multi-band analysis.
• License is listed as 'other-license-specified' without explicit details on reuse terms.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Satellite observations from the Suomi NPP VIIRS instrument, processed with a BRDF/Albedo algorithm.

Time Range

Covers the entire Suomi NPP mission, with daily production and improved calibration for the full timeline.

Freshness

2026-04-09 21:15:07.205274

Geography

Global