Skip to main content

Description

The MCD64A1 Version 6 data product was decommissioned on July 31, 2023. Users are encouraged to use the MCD64A1 Version 6.1 data product.

The Terra and Aqua combined MCD64A1 Version 6 Burned Area data product is a monthly, global gridded 500 meter (m) product containing per-pixel burned-area and quality information. The MCD64A1 burned-area mapping approach employs 500 m Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Surface Reflectance imagery coupled with 1 kilometer (km) MODIS active fire observations. The algorithm uses a burn sensitive Vegetation Index (VI) to create dynamic thresholds that are applied to the composite data. The VI is derived from MODIS shortwave infrared atmospherically corrected surface reflectance bands 5 and 7 with a measure of temporal texture. The algorithm identifies the date of burn for the 500 m grid cells within each individual MODIS tile. The date is encoded in a single data layer as the ordinal day of the calendar year on which the burn occurred with values assigned to unburned land pixels and additional special values reserved for missing data and water grid cells.

The data layers provided in the MCD64A1 product include Burn Date, Burn Data Uncertainty, Quality Assurance, along with First Day and Last Day of reliable change detection of the year.

Known Issues

  • Known issues are described on the MODIS Land Quality Assessment website and in Section 8 of the User Guide which covers Cropland Burning, the August 2000 and June 2001 Data Outages, and the August 2020 Aqua Outage.

Version Description

The following changes and improvements were implemented for inputs to MODIS Version 6 burned area data products: (1) The product is now generated using an improved version of the MCD64 burned area mapping algorithm (Giglio et al., 2009), i.e., MCD64A1 will be adopted as the standard MODIS burned area product for Collection 6. The MCD45A1 product will not be generated beyond Collection 5.1, (2) The product is generated using Version 6 surface reflectance and active fire input data, (3) General improvement (reduced omission error) in burned area detection, including significantly better detection of small burns, (4) Modest reduction in burn-date temporal uncertainty, (5) Significant reduction in the occurrence of unclassified grid cells due to algorithm changes and refinements in the upstream Version 6 input data, (6) Product coverage expanded from 219 to 268 MODIS tiles, and (7) Expanded per-pixel Quality Assurance (QA) product layer.

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
2000-11-01 to 2022-12-31
Temporal Resolution
1 Month
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
C2763297163-LPCLOUD
Data State
DEPRECATED
Number of Files/Granules
0
Processing Level
3
Published
Updated
Science Keywords
Fire Ecology ,
Biomass Burning ,
Wildfires ,
Fire Occurrence

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

Giglio, L., Justice, C., Boschetti, L., & Roy, D. (2015). MCD64A1 MODIS/Terra+Aqua Burned Area Monthly L3 Global 500m SIN Grid V006 [Data set]. NASA Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center. https://doi.org/10.5067/MODIS/MCD64A1.006 Date Accessed: 2026-06-19

File Naming Convention

MCD64A1.A2002244.h11v12.006.2017013095459.hdf

The file name begins with the Product Short Name (MCD64A1) followed by the Julian Date of Acquisition formatted as AYYYYDDD (A2002244), the Tile Identifier which is horizontal tile and vertical tile provided as hXXvYY (h11v12), the Version of the data collection (006), the Julian Date and Time of Production designated as YYYYDDDHHMMSS (2017013095459), and the Data Format (hdf).

Documents

Publications Citing This Dataset

Filters
Title Year Author Topic
Heat-amplifying boreal forests exacerbate snowmelt, fuel availability Lee, Ju Hyoung, Yebra, Marta, Matin, Mir, AghaKouchak, Amir Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area, Albedo, Snow Cover
Half of land use carbon emissions in Southeast Asia can be mitigated through peat swamp forest and mangrove conservation and restoration Sasmito, Sigit D., Taillardat, Pierre, Adinugroho, Wahyu C., Krisnawati, Haruni, Novita, Nisa, Fatoyinbo, Lola, Friess, Daniel A., Page, Susan E., Lovelock, Catherine E., Murdiyarso, Daniel, Taylor, David, Lupascu, Massimo Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
Human activity augments lightning ignitions to reshape fire seasonality across all biomes on Earth Ellis, Todd M., Bowman, David M. J. S., Williamson, Grant J. Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area, Photosynthesis, Primary Production, Vegetation Productivity
High-Resolution Satellite Data Improve Insights Into Landscape Fires and FernandezGarcia, V., Phelps, L. N., Strydom, T., Muando, P. J., Ranaivonasy, J., Lehmann, C. E. R., Kull, C. A. Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
Delayed formation of Arctic snow cover in response to wildland fires in a warming climate Qing, Yamin, Wang, Shuo, AghaKouchak, Amir, Gentine, Pierre Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
Forest fire risk assessment model optimized by stochastic average Fu, Zexin, Gong, Adu, Wan, Jinhong, Ba, Wanru, Wang, Haihan, Zhang, Jiaming Vegetation Index, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), Terrain Elevation, Digital Elevation/Terrain Model (DEM), Topographical Relief Maps, Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
Global alternatives of natural vegetation cover Bastin, Jean-Francois, Latte, Nicolas, Bogaert, Jan, Garcia, Claude A., Berzaghi, Fabio, Maestre, Fernando T., Svenning, Jens-Christian, Assede, Emeline, Barima, Sabas, Besisa, Timothee, Bouchoms, Samuel, Crowther, Thomas W., de Haulleville, Thales, de Lame, Hugo, Depoortere, Pauline, Dufrene, Marc, Hoek Van Dijke, Anne J., Lhoest, Simon, Mahy, Gregory, Messier, Christian, Mollicone, Danilo, Ramalason, Felana Nantenaina, Peaucelle, Marc, Plumacker, Antoine, Quetier, Fabien, Rakotondrasoa, Olivia, Sambieni, Kouagou Raoul, Sparrow, Ben, Tarelkin, Yegor, Sikuzani, Yannick Useni, Vander Linden, Arthur, Lejeune, Philippe Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area, Land Surface Temperature, Emissivity
Fuels Mediate the Influence of Climate Teleconnections on Wildfires in Dryland Ecosystems Qu, Yuquan, Veraverbeke, Sander, Miralles, Diego G., Fan, Jingfang, Vereecken, Harry, Montzka, Carsten Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area, Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar), Land Surface Temperature, Surface Thermal Properties, THERMAL ANOMALIES, Vegetation Index, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI)
Generation of 30 m resolution monthly burned area product in Africa Huang, Shunguo, Long, Tengfei, Zhang, Zhaoming, He, Guojin, Wang, Guizhou Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
Firestorm in California: The new reality for wildland-urban interface regions Amiri, Afshin, Gumiere, Silvio, Bonakdari, Hossein Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar), Vegetation Index, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), Land Use/Land Cover Classification, Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
Evenness peaks in fire-resilient vegetation preceded ecosystem shifts in Aleman, Julie C, Garcin, Yannick, Vanniere, Boris, Vullien, Antoine, Williamson, David, Carcaillet, Christopher Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
Fire weather severity in southern Africa is increasing faster and more extensively in the late than in the early dry season Catarino, Silvia, Silva, Joao M. N., Neves, Alana K., Oom, Duarte, Pereira, Jose M. C. Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
Evaluation of modeled smoke plumes of wildfires in the Argentinian Garcia Ferreyra, Maria Fernanda, Scavuzzo, Carlos Marcelo, Otero, Lidia Ana, Curci, Gabriele Land Use/Land Cover Classification, Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area, Canopy Characteristics, Evergreen Vegetation, Crown, Deciduous Vegetation, Leaf Characteristics, Vegetation Cover
PM2.5 Chen, Deliang, Wu, Jian, Kong, Shaofei, Dong, Haoyu, Jiang, Weisi, Qi, Shihua Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
Predicting Asthma Mortality in Argentina Using Remote Sensing Data and Machine Learning: RPIC Estudiantil 2025, 17 al 19 de septiembre de 2025, San Francisco, Cordoba Coiman, Abraham, Garcia Ferreyra, Maria Fernanda, Andreo, Veronica Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
Predicting fire risk in colombia tropical savannas: A multi-scenario Gonzalez, Tania Marisol, Gonzalez-Trujillo, Juan David, Elizalde, Maria Meza, Armenteras, Dolors Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
Nationally consistent mapping of wildland fuel types across Australia Joshi, Rakesh C., Cruz, Miguel G., Donohue, Randall J. Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
Optimal spatiotemporal thinning schemes combined with wood vaulting could maximize the forest biomass carbon sink in China Chen, Yongzhe, Feng, Xiaoming, Huang, Yuanyuan, Liang, Shunlin, Wang, Lijuan, Ma, Haozhi, Gao, Zhen, Cheng, Linhai, Sucharitakul, Phuping, Zhang, Junze, Xia, Jiangzhou, Yuan, Wenping, Fu, Bojie Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area, Emissivity, Land Surface Temperature, Precipitation, Precipitation Amount, Precipitation Rate, Snow, Rain
Protected areas show substantial and increasing risk of wildfire globally Resco de Dios, Victor, Cunill Camprubi, Angel, Campos-Arceiz, Ahimsa, Clarke, Hamish, He, Yingpeng, Zveushe, Obey K, Domenech, Rut, Ying, Han, Yao, Yinan Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
SeasFire cube-a multivariate dataset for global wildfire modeling Karasante, Ilektra, Alonso, Lazaro, Prapas, Ioannis, Ahuja, Akanksha, Carvalhais, Nuno, Papoutsis, Ioannis Leaf Characteristics, Photosynthetically Active Radiation, Leaf Area Index (LAI), Fraction Of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fapar), Land Surface Temperature, Emissivity, Carbonaceous Aerosols, Nitrogen Oxides, Particulates, Hydrogen Cyanide, Emissions, Non-methane Hydrocarbons/Volatile Organic Compounds, Particulate Matter, Fire Occurrence, Nitrogen Oxides, Sulfur Dioxide, Carbon And Hydrocarbon Compounds, Vegetation Index, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Population Density, Burned Area
Range-wide assessment of habitat suitability for jaguars using multiscale species distribution modelling Alvarenga, Guilherme Costa, Sartor, Caroline C., Cushman, Samuel A., Zimmermann, Alexandra, Srbek-Araujo, Ana Carolina, Mendes-Oliveira, Ana Cristina, Harmsen, Bart, De Angelo, Carlos, Esteves, Carolina Franco, de Campos, Claudia B., Polli, Daiana Jeronimo, Viana, Diego F. Passos, Grabin, Diogo Maia, Donadio, Emiliano, Ramalho, Emiliano E., Payan, Esteban, Azevedo, Fernando C. C., Palomares, Francisco, Powell, George V. N., Ceballos, Gerardo, Porfirio, Grasiela, Zarza, Heliot, Cassaigne, Ivonne, Bogoni, Juliano A., Sena, Leonardo, Maranhao, Louise, de Brito, Marcos Roberto Monteiro, Tobler, Mathias W., Wiig, ystein, Foster, Rebecca J., Sampaio, Ricardo, Nunez, Rodrigo, Morato, Ronaldo G., Boron, Valeria, Moreno, Wener Hugo Arruda, Malhi, Yadvinder, Macdonald, David W., Kaszta, Zaneta Canopy Characteristics, Evergreen Vegetation, Crown, Deciduous Vegetation, Leaf Characteristics, Vegetation Cover, Land Use/Land Cover Classification, Land Surface Temperature, Emissivity, Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area, Photosynthesis, Primary Production, Vegetation Productivity, Vegetation Index, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI)
Satellite remote sensing can operationalise the IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology in the biome-diverse north-east of Brazil Wells, Lucy H., Dexter, Kyle G., Pennington, R. Toby, Coutinho, Italo Antonio Cotta, Ramos, Desiree, Phillips, Oliver L., Baker, Tim, Ryan, Casey M. Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
Satellite Monitoring of Postfire Normalized Burn Ratio Dynamics in Shvetsov, E. G. Reflectance, Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
Quantile-Based Fire Weather Index Better Informs Detection and Du, Jizeng, Li, Dan, Zhang, Hengfei, Liu, Hongxi, Chen, Yang Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area
Resilience to Forest Fires: An Indicator-Based Study in a Tropical Forest of Uttarakhand, India Aryalakshmi, M., Indu, J., Karthikeyan, L. Fire Ecology, Biomass Burning, Wildfires, Fire Occurrence, Burned Area, Reflectance
You're viewing 75 of 458