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Description

The MCD43A2 Version 6 data product was decommissioned on July 31, 2023. Users are encouraged to use the MCD43A2 Version 6.1 data product.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) MCD43A2 Version 6 Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function and Albedo (BRDF/Albedo) Quality dataset is produced daily using 16 days of Terra and Aqua MODIS data at 500 meter (m) resolution. Data are temporally weighted to the ninth day of the 16-day retrieval period which is reflected in the Julian date in the file name. MCD43A2 contains the quality information for the corresponding MCD43A3 Albedo and MCD43A4 Nadir BRDF-Adjusted Reflectance (NBAR) products.

Users are urged to use the band specific quality flags to isolate the highest quality full inversion results for their own science applications as described in the User Guide.

The MCD43A2 contains BRDF/Albedo band quality (inversion information) and days of valid observation within the 16-day period for MODIS bands 1 through 7 along with land water type, snow BRDF albedo, local solar noon, platform, and BRDF/Albedo uncertainty.

Known Issues

  • The metadata information within the HDF file of the Version 6 MCD43A2 gives incorrect SDS layer parameters for
    BRDF_Albedo_ValidObs_Band1 through 7. The metadata states that the Valid Range is 0 to 32767 with a scaling factor of 0.001, which is incorrect. The Data Layers Characteristics section of this product page is accurate, the correct Valid Range is 0 to 65535 with no scaling factor.
  • The incorrect representation of the aerosol quantities (low average high) in the C6 MYD09 and MOD09 surface reflectance products may have impacted downstream products particularly over arid bright surfaces. This (and a few other issues) have been corrected for C6.1. Therefore users should avoid substantive use of the C6 MCD43 products and wait for the C6.1 products. In any event, users are always strongly encouraged to download and use the extensive QA data provided in MCD43A2, in addition to the briefer mandatory QAs provided as part of the MCD43A1, 3, and 4 products.
  • Corrections were implemented in Collection 6.1 reprocessing.
  • For complete information about the MCD43A2 known issues refer to the MODIS Land Quality Assessment website.

Improvements/Changes from Previous Version

  • Observations are weighted to estimate the BRDF/Albedo on the ninth day of the 16-day period.
  • MCD43 products use the snow status weighted to the ninth day instead of the majority snow/no-snow observations from the 16-day period.
  • Better quality at high latitudes from use of all available observations for the acquisition period. Collection 5 used only four observations per day.
  • The MCD43 products use L2G-lite surface reflectance as input.
  • When there are insufficient high quality reflectances, a database with archetypal BRDF parameters is used to supplement the observational data and perform a lower quality magnitude inversion. This database is continually updated with the latest full inversion retrieval for each pixel.

Version Description

The MCD43A2 Version 6 data product was decommissioned on July 31, 2023. Users are encouraged to use the MCD43A2 Version 6.1 data product (https://doi.org/10.5067/MODIS/MCD43A2.061).

Product Summary

Platforms
Terra,
Aqua
Instruments
MODIS
Spatial Extent
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180
Spatial Resolution
500 Meters x 500 Meters
Geographic Region
GLOBAL
Coordinate System
CARTESIAN
Granule Spatial Representation
GEODETIC
Temporal Extent
2000-02-16 to 2023-02-17
Temporal Resolution
1 Day
Data Partner
Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center (LP DAAC)
School for the Environment, University of Massachusetts, Boston (UMASS-B/SFE)
MODIS Adaptive Processing System, Terrestrial Information Systems Laboratory, Earth Sciences Division, Science and Exploration Directorate, Goddard Space Flight Center, NASA (NASA/GSFC/SED/ESD/TISL/MODAPS)
Concept ID
C2763289466-LPCLOUD
Data State
DEPRECATED
Processing Level
3
Published
Updated
Science Keywords
Reflectance,
Albedo,
Anisotropy

Citation

Citation is critically important for dataset documentation and discovery. This dataset is openly shared, without restriction, in accordance with the EOSDIS Data Use and Citation Guidance.

Copy Citation

Schaaf, C., & Wang, Z. (2015). MCD43A2 MODIS/Terra+Aqua BRDF/Albedo Quality Daily L3 Global - 500m V006 [Data set]. NASA Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center. https://doi.org/10.5067/MODIS/MCD43A2.006 Date Accessed: 2025-10-30

File Naming Convention

MCD43A2.A2002272.h16v16.006.2016132202805.hdf

The file name begins with the Product Short Name (MCD43A2) followed by the Julian Date of Acquisition formatted as AYYYYDDD (A2002272), the Tile Identifier which is horizontal tile and vertical tile provided as hXXvYY (h16v16), the Version of the data collection (006), the Julian Date and Time of Production designated as YYYYDDDHHMMSS (2016132202805), and the Data Format (hdf).

Documents

Publications Citing This Dataset

Filters
Title Year Author
Spatial difference between temperature and snowfall driven spring phenology of alpine grassland land surface based on process-based modeling on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau An, S.
Using a vegetation index-based mixture model to estimate fractional vegetation cover products by jointly using multiple satellite data—Method and feasibility analysis Song, W.
Satellite observed vegetation dynamics and drivers in the Namib sand sea over the recent 20 years Qiao, N.
Retrieval and validation of forest background reflectivity from daily Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) data across European forests Pisek, J.
Changes in clear-sky shortwave aerosol direct radiative effects since 2002 Loeb, N. G.
Potential of hotspot solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence for better tracking terrestrial photosynthesis Hao, D.
Consequences of the 2019 greenland ice sheet melt episode on albedo Elmes, A.
Evaluation of surface albedo over the Tibetan Plateau simulated by CMIP5 models using in-situ measurements and MODIS An, Y.
Development of land surface albedo algorithm for the GK-2A/AMI instrument Lee, K. S.
Precipitation and minimum temperature are primary climatic controls of alpine grassland autumn phenology on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau An, S.
SHOWING 10 OF 22

Variables

Variables are a set of physical properties whose values determine the characteristics or behavior of something. For example, temperature and pressure are variables of the atmosphere. Parameters and variables can be used interchangeably. Variable level attributes provide individual information for each variable.

The Name in this table is the variable name. Fill value indicates missing or undefined data points in a variable. Valid range is the range of values the variable can store. Scale factor is used to increase or decrease the size of an object and can be used to correct for distortion. For questions on a specific variable, please use the Earthdata Forum.

Name Description Units Data Type Fill Value Valid Range Scale Factor
BRDF_Albedo_Band_Quality_Band1 BRDF Inversion Information for Band 1 Bit Field uint8 255 255 to 254 N/A
BRDF_Albedo_Band_Quality_Band2 BRDF Inversion Information for Band 2 Bit Field uint8 255 255 to 254 N/A
BRDF_Albedo_Band_Quality_Band3 BRDF Inversion Information for Band 3 Bit Field uint8 255 255 to 254 N/A
BRDF_Albedo_Band_Quality_Band4 BRDF Inversion Information for Band 4 Bit Field uint8 255 255 to 254 N/A
BRDF_Albedo_Band_Quality_Band5 BRDF Inversion Information for Band 5 Bit Field uint8 255 255 to 254 N/A
BRDF_Albedo_Band_Quality_Band6 BRDF Inversion Information for Band 6 Bit Field uint8 255 255 to 254 N/A
BRDF_Albedo_Band_Quality_Band7 BRDF Inversion Information for Band 7 Bit Field uint8 255 255 to 254 N/A
BRDF_Albedo_LandWaterType Land Water Type Bit Field uint8 255 255 to 254 N/A
BRDF_Albedo_LocalSolarNoon Solar Zenith Angle of Local Solar Noon Bit Field uint8 255 255 to 254 N/A
BRDF_Albedo_Platform BRDF Albedo Platform information Bit Field uint8 255 255 to 254 N/A
BRDF_Albedo_Uncertainty BRDF Albedo Uncertainty N/A uint16 32767 32767 to 32766 0.001
BRDF_Albedo_ValidObs_Band1 Valid Observation for Band 1 N/A uint16 0 0 to 65535 N/A
BRDF_Albedo_ValidObs_Band2 Valid Observation for Band 2 N/A uint16 0 0 to 65535 N/A
BRDF_Albedo_ValidObs_Band3 Valid Observation for Band 3 N/A uint16 0 0 to 65535 N/A
BRDF_Albedo_ValidObs_Band4 Valid Observation for Band 4 N/A uint16 0 0 to 65535 N/A
BRDF_Albedo_ValidObs_Band5 Valid Observation for Band 5 N/A uint16 0 0 to 65535 N/A
BRDF_Albedo_ValidObs_Band6 Valid Observation for Band 6 N/A uint16 0 0 to 65535 N/A
BRDF_Albedo_ValidObs_Band7 Valid Observation for Band 7 N/A uint16 0 0 to 65535 N/A
Snow_BRDF_Albedo Snow-free BRDF/Albedo retrieved Bit Field uint8 255 255 to 254 N/A
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