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Description

The MCD15A2H Version 6.1 Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Level 4 combined Leaf Area Index (LAI) and Fraction of Photosynthetically Active Radiation (FPAR) product is an 8-day composite dataset with 500 meter pixel size. The algorithm chooses the best pixel available from all the acquisitions of both MODIS sensors located on NASA’s Terra and Aqua satellites from within the 8-day period.

LAI is defined as the one-sided green leaf area per unit ground area in broadleaf canopies and as one-half the total needle surface area per unit ground area in coniferous canopies. FPAR is defined as the fraction of incident photosynthetically active radiation (400-700 nm) absorbed by the green elements of a vegetation canopy.

Known Issues

Version Description

The following changes and improvements were implemented for inputs to MODIS Version 6.1 LAI/FPAR data products: (1) Version 6.1 Level-1B (L1B) products have been improved by undergoing various calibration changes that include: changes to the response-versus-scan angle (RVS) approach that affects reflectance bands for Aqua and Terra MODIS, corrections to adjust for the optical crosstalk in Terra MODIS infrared (IR) bands, and corrections to the Terra MODIS forward look-up table (LUT) update for the period 2012 – 2017, and (2) A polarization correction has been applied to the L1B Reflective Solar Bands (RSB).

Product Summary

Platforms
Terra ,
Aqua
Instruments
MODIS
Projects
TERRA ,
Aqua
Spatial Extent

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

Spatial Resolution
500 Meters x 500 Meters
Spatial Reference System(s)
MODIS Sinusoidal Tiling System
Location
GLOBAL
Coordinate System
CARTESIAN
Granule Spatial Representation
GEODETIC
Temporal Extent
2002-07-04 to Present
Temporal Resolution
8 Day
Data Partner
Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center (LP DAAC) ,
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
C2222147000-LPCLOUD
Data State
ACTIVE
Number of Files/Granules
315546
Processing Level
4
Published
Updated
Science Keywords
Photosynthetically Active Radiation ,
Leaf Area Index (LAI) ,
Leaf Characteristics ,
Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar)

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

Myneni, R., Knyazikhin, Y., & Park, T. (2021). MODIS/Terra+Aqua Leaf Area Index/FPAR 8-Day L4 Global 500m SIN Grid V061 [Dataset]. NASA Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center. https://doi.org/10.5067/MODIS/MCD15A2H.061 Date Accessed: 2026-06-12

File Naming Convention

MCD15A2H.A2025209.h23v11.061.2025218033337.hdf

The file name begins with the Product Short Name (MCD15A2H) followed by the Julian Date of Acquisition formatted as AYYYYDDD (A2025209), the Tile Identifier which is horizontal tile and vertical tile provided as hXXvYY (h23v11), the Version of the data collection (061), the Julian Date and Time of Production designated as YYYYDDDHHMMSS (2025218033337), and the Data Format (hdf).

Documents

USER'S GUIDE

ALGORITHM THEORETICAL BASIS DOCUMENT (ATBD)

PRODUCT QUALITY ASSESSMENT

SCIENCE DATA PRODUCT VALIDATION

GENERAL DOCUMENTATION

Publications Citing This Dataset

Filters
Title Year Author Topic
An observation-driven approach to improve vegetation phenology in a global land surface model Kolassa, Jana, Reichle, Rolf H., Koster, Randal D., Liu, Qing, Mahanama, Sarith, Zeng, FanWei Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar), Surface Soil Moisture
An assessment of using remote sensing-based models to estimate ground surface soil heat flux on the Tibetan Plateau during the freeze-thaw process Yang, Cheng, Wu, Tonghua, Yao, Jimin, Li, Ren, Xie, Changwei, Hu, Guojie, Zhu, Xiaofan, Zhang, Yinghui, Ni, Jie, Hao, Junming, Li, Xiangfei, Ma, Wensi, Wen, Amin Vegetation Index, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar), Reflectance
A scaling-based method for the rapid retrieval of FPAR from fine-resolution satellite data in the remote-sensing trend-surface framework Wang, Yiting, Yan, Guangjian, Hu, Ronghai, Xie, Donghui, Chen, Wei Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar), Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation
Characterizing the error and bias of remotely sensed LAI Products: An Example for Tropical and Subtropical Evergreen Forests in South China Zhao, Yuan, Chen, Xiaoqiu, Smallman, Thomas Luke, Flack-Prain, Sophie, Milodowski, David T., Williams, Mathew Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar), Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation
Characteristics, drivers and feedbacks of global greening Piao, Shilong, Wang, Xuhui, Park, Taejin, Chen, Chi, Lian, Xu, He, Yue, Bjerke, Jarle W., Chen, Anping, Ciais, Philippe, Tmmervik, Hans, Nemani, Ramakrishna R., Myneni, Ranga B. Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar), Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation
Assessments of gross primary productivity estimations with satellite data-driven models using eddy covariance observation sites over the northern hemisphere Xie, Xinyao, Li, Ainong, Tan, Jianbo, Jin, Huaan, Nan, Xi, Zhang, Zhengjian, Bian, Jinhu, Lei, Guangbin Vegetation Index, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar)
Evaluation of the version 5.0 global land surface satellite (GLASS) leaf area index product derived from MODIS data Li, Juan, Xiao, Zhiqiang Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar)
Hydrometeorological sensitivities of net ecosystem carbon dioxide and methane exchange of an Amazonian palm swamp peatland Griffis, T.J., Roman, D.T., Wood, J.D., Deventer, J., Fachin, L., Rengifo, J., Del Castillo, D., Lilleskov, E., Kolka, R., Chimner, R.A., del Aguila-Pasquel, J., Wayson, C., Hergoualc'h, K., Baker, J.M., Cadillo-Quiroz, H., Ricciuto, D.M. Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar)
Integrated modelling to assess climate change impacts on groundwater and surface water in the Great Lakes Basin using diverse climate forcing Persaud, Elisha, Levison, Jana, MacRitchie, Scott, Berg, Steven J., Erler, Andre R., Parker, Beth, Sudicky, Edward Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar)
LIDA: A Land Integrated Data Assimilation Framework for Mapping Land Abdolghafoorian, Abedeh, Farhadi, Leila Land Use/Land Cover Classification, Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar), Precipitation, Precipitation Amount, Precipitation Rate, Snow, Rain
Land surface black-sky albedo at a fixed solar zenith angle and its relation to forest structure during peak growing season based on remote sensing data Alibakhshi, Sara, Crowther, Thomas W., Naimi, Babak Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar), Albedo, Anisotropy, Reflectance
Landsat-8 and Sentinel-2 canopy water content estimation in croplands through radiative transfer model inversion Boren, Erik J., Boschetti, Luigi Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar)
Laboratory measurements of stomatal NO2 deposition to native Delaria, Erin R., Place, Bryan K., Liu, Amy X., Cohen, Ronald C. Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar)
LAI inversion from MODIS data using deep belief network (DBN) Wang, Weiyan, Jia, Chen, Gao, Huijuan Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar)
Importance of the Collection of Abundant GroundTruth Data for Accurate Detection of Spatial and Temporal Variability of Vegetation by Satellite Remote Sensing Nagai, Shin, Nasahara, Kenlo Nishida, Akitsu, Tomoko Kawaguchi, Saitoh, Taku M., Muraoka, Hiroyuki Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar)
Impact of land cover and leaf area index on BVOC emissions over the Korean Peninsula Jang, Youjung, Eo, Yangdam, Jang, Meongdo, Woo, Jung-Hun, Kim, Younha, Lee, Jae-Bum, Lim, Jae-Hyun Land Use/Land Cover Classification, Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar)
Impact of frozen soil changes on vegetation phenology in the source region of the Yellow River from 2003 to 2015 Gao, Bing, Li, Jie, Wang, Xiaoshu Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar)
Impact of Bias-Correction Methods in Assessing the Potential Flood Frequency Change in the Bago River Acierto, Ralph Allen E., Kawasaki, Akiyuki, Zin, Win Win Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar)
Impact of revegetation of the Loess Plateau of China on the regional growing season water balance Ge, Jun, Pitman, Andrew J., Guo, Weidong, Zan, Beilei, Fu, Congbin Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar), Land Use/Land Cover Classification, Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation
Determining the dry boundary of the LST/FVC space for soil moisture monitoringa semi-empirical method Sun, Hao, Ma, Liru, Wang, Yanmei, Zhou, Baichi, Liu, Weihan, Cai, Chuangchuang, Zhou, Wei, Chen, Wei Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar), Reflectance, Anisotropy, Evapotranspiration, Latent Heat Flux, Photosynthesis, Primary Production, Land Surface Temperature, Emissivity
Discrepancies in the simulated global terrestrial latent heat flux from GLASS and MERRA-2 surface net radiation products Guo, Xiaozheng, Yao, Yunjun, Zhang, Yuhu, Lin, Yi, Jiang, Bo, Jia, Kun, Zhang, Xiaotong, Xie, Xianhong, Zhang, Lilin, Shang, Ke, Yang, Junming, Bei, Xiangyi Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar), Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation
Downscaling of MODIS leaf area index using landsat vegetation index Ovakoglou, Georgios, Alexandridis, Thomas K., Clevers, Jan G.P.W, Gitas, Ioannis Z. Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar)
Estimating net irrigation across the north China plain through dual modeling of evapotranspiration Koch, Julian, Zhang, Wenmin, Martinsen, Grith, He, Xin, Stisen, Simon Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar)
Contrasting CO(2)and water vapour fluxes in dry forest and pasture sites Nosetto, Marcelo D., Luna Toledo, Emanuel, Magliano, Patricio N., Figuerola, Patricia, Blanco, Lisandro J., Jobbagy, Esteban G. Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar), Land Surface Temperature, Emissivity
Global distribution of hydrologic controls on forest growth Roebroek, Caspar T. J., Melsen, Lieke A., Hoek van Dijke, Anne J., Fan, Ying, Teuling, Adriaan J. Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar)
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