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Description

The MCD43A4 Version 6 data product was decommissioned on July 31, 2023. Users are encouraged to use the MCD43A4 Version 6.1 data product.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) MCD43A4 Version 6 Nadir Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function (BRDF)-Adjusted Reflectance (NBAR) dataset is produced daily using 16 days of Terra and Aqua MODIS data at 500 meter (m) resolution. The view angle effects are removed from the directional reflectances, resulting in a stable and consistent NBAR product. Data are temporally weighted to the ninth day which is reflected in the Julian date in the file name.

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 MCD43A4 provides NBAR and simplified mandatory quality layers for MODIS bands 1 through 7. Essential quality information provided in the corresponding MCD43A2 data file should be consulted when using this product.

Known Issues

  • 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 MCD43A4 known issues refer to the MODIS Land Quality Assessment website.

Version Description

The following changes and improvements were implemented for inputs to MODIS Version 6 BRDF/Albedo Parameter data products: (1) Observations are weighted to estimate the BRDF/Albedo on the ninth day of the 16-day period, (2) Products utilize the snow status weighted to the ninth day, (3) Enhanced quality at high latitudes achieved through the utilization of all available observations during the acquisition period, (4) Products utilize L2G-lite surface reflectance as input, and (5) In instances where there are insufficient high-quality reflectances, a database containing archetypal BRDF parameters is employed to supplement the observational data and perform a lower-quality magnitude inversion.

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
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
C2763289471-LPCLOUD
Data State
DEPRECATED
Number of Files/Granules
0
Processing Level
3
Published
Updated
Science Keywords
Reflectance ,
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). MCD43A4 MODIS/Terra+Aqua BRDF/Albedo Nadir BRDF Adjusted Ref Daily L3 Global - 500m V006 [Dataset]. NASA Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center. https://doi.org/10.5067/MODIS/MCD43A4.006 Date Accessed: 2026-08-12

File Naming Convention

MCD43A4.A2002272.h16v16.006.2016132202805.hdf

The file name begins with the Product Short Name (MCD43A4) 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 Topic
Solar position confounds the relationship between ecosystem function and vegetation indices derived from solar and photosynthetically active radiation fluxes Rocha, Adrian V., Appel, Rose, Bret-Harte, M. Syndonia, Euskirchen, Eugenie S., Salmon, Verity, Shaver, Gaius Reflectance, Anisotropy
Reconstructing daily 30 m NDVI over complex agricultural landscapes using a crop reference curve approach Sun, Liang, Gao, Feng, Xie, Donghui, Anderson, Martha, Chen, Ruiqing, Yang, Yun, Yang, Yang, Chen, Zhongxin Reflectance, Anisotropy
Remote sensing of environmental risk factors for malaria in different McMahon, Andrea, Mihretie, Abere, Ahmed, Adem Agmas, Lake, Mastewal, Awoke, Worku, Wimberly, Michael Charles Reflectance, Anisotropy, Land Surface Temperature, Emissivity, Albedo
Using artificial neural network algorithm and remote sensing vegetation index improves the accuracy of the Penman-Monteith equation to estimate cropland evapotranspiration Liu, Yan, Zhang, Sha, Zhang, Jiahua, Tang, Lili, Bai, Yun Reflectance, Anisotropy
Unveiling the factors responsible for Australias black summer fires of 2019/2020 Levin, Noam, Yebra, Marta, Phinn, Stuart Reflectance, Anisotropy, Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
The tempo of greening in the European AlpsSpatial variations on a common theme Choler, Philippe, Bayle, Arthur, Carlson, Bradley Z., Randin, Christophe, Filippa, Gianluca, Cremonese, Edoardo Reflectance, Anisotropy
Towards analysis ready data of optical CubeSat images: Demonstrating a hierarchical normalization framework at a wetland site Li, Zhan, Scheffler, Daniel, Coops, Nicholas C., Leach, Nicholas, Sachs, Torsten Reflectance, Anisotropy
The June 2020 Aniangzhai landslide in Sichuan Province, Southwest ChinaSlope instability analysis from radar and optical satellite remote sensing data Xia, Zhuge, Motagh, Mahdi, Li, Tao, Roessner, Sigrid Reflectance, Anisotropy
TimeScale Dependent Relations Between Earth Observation Based Proxies of Vegetation Productivity Linscheid, Nora, Mahecha, Miguel D., Rammig, Anja, Carvalhais, Nuno, Gans, Fabian, Nelson, Jacob A., Walther, Sophia, Weber, Ulrich, Reichstein, Markus Reflectance, Anisotropy, Vegetation Index, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), Albedo
ValLAI_Crop, a validation dataset for coarse-resolution satellite LAI products over Chinese cropland Song, Bowen, Liu, Liangyun, Du, Shanshan, Zhang, Xiao, Chen, Xidong, Zhang, Helin Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar), Reflectance, Anisotropy
Using the California waterfowl tracker to assess proximity of waterfowl to commercial poultry in the Central Valley of California Acosta, Sarai, Kelman, Todd, Feirer, Shane, Matchett, Elliott, Smolinsky, Jaclyn, Pitesky, Maurice, Buler, Jeffrey Reflectance, Anisotropy
Validating commonly used drought indicators in Kenya Bowell, Andrew, Salakpi, Edward E, Guigma, Kiswendsida, Muthoka, James M, Mwangi, John, Rowhani, Pedram Land Use/Land Cover Classification, Reflectance, Anisotropy, Land Surface Temperature, Emissivity
Winter snow and spring temperature have differential effects on vegetation phenology and productivity across Arctic plant communities Kelsey, Katharine C., Pedersen, Stine Hjlund, Leffler, A. Joshua, Sexton, Joseph O., Feng, Min, Welker, Jeffrey M. Reflectance, Anisotropy
From standard weather stations to virtual micro-meteorological towers in ungauged sites: Modeling tool for surface energy fluxes, evapotranspiration, soil temperature, and soil moisture estimations Celis, Jorge A., Moreno, Hernan A., Basara, Jeffrey B., McPherson, Renee A., Cosh, Michael, Ochsner, Tyson, Xiao, Xiangming RADAR IMAGERY, Terrain Elevation, Topographical Relief Maps, Digital Elevation/Terrain Model (DEM), Reflectance, Anisotropy, Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar), Albedo
GLC_FCS30: Global land-cover product with fine classification system at 30g m using time-series Landsat imagery Zhang, Xiao, Liu, Liangyun, Chen, Xidong, Gao, Yuan, Xie, Shuai, Mi, Jun Land Use/Land Cover Classification, Terrain Elevation, Digital Elevation/Terrain Model (DEM), Topographical Relief Maps, RADAR IMAGERY, Reflectance, Anisotropy
Global fuel moisture content mapping from MODIS Quan, Xingwen, Yebra, Marta, Riano, David, He, Binbin, Lai, Gengke, Liu, Xiangzhuo Land Use/Land Cover Classification, Reflectance, Anisotropy, Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar)
Extraction of crop information through the spatiotemporal fusion of OLI and MODIS images Oldoni, Lucas Volochen, Mercante, Erivelto, Antunes, Joao Francisco Goncalves, Cattani, Carlos Eduardo Vizzotto, Silva Junior, Carlos Antonio da, Caon, Iva Luiz, Prudente, Victor Hugo Rohden Reflectance, Anisotropy
Extreme fire weather is the major driver of severe bushfires in southeast Australia Wang, Bin, Spessa, Allan C., Feng, Puyu, Hou, Xin, Yue, Chao, Luo, Jing-Jia, Ciais, Philippe, Waters, Cathy, Cowie, Annette, Nolan, Rachael H., Nikonovas, Tadas, Jin, Huidong, Walshaw, Henry, Wei, Jinghua, Guo, Xiaowei, Liu, De Li, Yu, Qiang Land Use/Land Cover Classification, Reflectance, Anisotropy, Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
Evaluation of forest carbon uptake in South Korea using the national flux tower network, remote sensing, and data-driven technology Cho, Sungsik, Kang, Minseok, Ichii, Kazuhito, Kim, Joon, Lim, Jong-Hwan, Chun, Jung-Hwa, Park, Chan-Woo, Kim, Hyun Seok, Choi, Sung-Won, Lee, Seung-Hoon, Indrawati, Yohana Maria, Kim, Jongho Photosynthesis, Primary Production, Vegetation Productivity, Reflectance, Anisotropy, Land Use/Land Cover Classification
Evaluation of four image fusion NDVI products against in-situ spectral-measurements over a heterogeneous rice paddy landscape Kong, Juwon, Ryu, Youngryel, Huang, Yan, Dechant, Benjamin, Houborg, Rasmus, Guan, Kaiyu, Zhu, Xiaolin Reflectance, Anisotropy
Estimating evapotranspiration based on the satellite-retrieved near-infrared reflectance of vegetation (NIRv) over croplands Tang, Lili, Zhang, Sha, Zhang, Jiahua, Liu, Yan, Bai, Yun Land Use/Land Cover Classification, Reflectance, Anisotropy, Land Surface Temperature, Emissivity
Estimation of pixel-level seismic vulnerability of the building environment based on mid-resolution optical remote sensing images Fan, Xiwei, Nie, Gaozhong, Xia, Chaoxu, Zhou, Junxue Vegetation Index, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), Reflectance, Anisotropy
Estimation of dry vegetation cover and mass from MODIS data: Wu, Jing, Kurosaki, Yasunori, Gantsetseg, Batdelger, Ishizuka, Masahide, Sekiyama, Tsuyoshi Thomas, Buyantogtokh, Batjargal, Liu, Jiaqi Vegetation Index, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), Reflectance, Anisotropy
An Algorithm for the Retrieval of High Temporal-Spatial Resolution Yang, Gang, Wang, Jiyan, Xiong, Junnan, Yong, Zhiwei, Ye, Chongchong, Sun, Huaizhang, Liu, Jun, Duan, Yu, He, Yufeng, He, Wen Reflectance, Anisotropy, Albedo
An adaptive adversarial domain adaptation approach for corn yield Ma, Yuchi, Zhang, Zhou, Yang, Hsiuhan Lexie, Yang, Zhengwei Reflectance, Anisotropy
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