AERDB_D3_VIIRS_SNPP: Daily Global Aerosol Data at 1-Degree Grid

NASA's VIIRS/SNPP Deep Blue Level 3 daily aerosol dataset provides a global, gridded view of atmospheric aerosols. The product contains 45 Science Data Set layers, including arithmetic mean and standard deviation for aerosol optical depth, derived from quality-filtered satellite retrievals. Data collection began on March 1, 2012, with daily files requiring at least three valid measurements per 1x1 degree grid cell.

Use Cases

• Tracking regional air pollution trends based on daily aerosol optical depth measurements.
• Validating atmospheric transport models using gridded, quality-assured aerosol data.
• Studying long-term aerosol climatology from the continuous record starting in 2012.
• Analyzing spatial patterns of particulate matter using the 1-degree resolution global grid.

Strengths

• Contains 45 distinct Science Data Set (SDS) layers for detailed analysis.
• Uses quality-assured retrievals, requiring at least three valid measurements per daily grid cell.
• Provides a continuous, long-term daily record starting from March 1, 2012.

Limitations

• Column names and a complete data dictionary are not provided in the available metadata.
• Specific row counts, file sizes, and detailed license terms are not consistently reported across platforms.
• The spatial resolution of 1x1 degrees may be too coarse for local-scale air quality studies.

Provenance

Source

NASA LAADS (Level-1 and Atmosphere Archive & Distribution System)

Collection Method

Derived from Version-2.0 L2 6-minute swath products (AERDB_L2_VIIRS_SNPP) from the VIIRS instrument on the Suomi NPP satellite.

Time Range

2012-03-01 to present

Freshness

2026-04-09 21:11:21.614973

Geography

Global