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Biosphere Data Access and Tools

NASA biosphere data range from surface reflectance data useful for measuring the greenness of vegetation to measurements of nighttime lights that disrupt the behaviors of wildlife. Our datasets and tools help researchers translate these interconnected data points into actionable knowledge.

Biosphere Datasets

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Dataset Version Platforms Instruments Temporal Extent Spatial Extent Spatial Resolution Data Format
VIIRS/NPP Vegetation Indices 16-Day L3 Global 1km SIN Grid V002 002 Suomi-NPP VIIRS 2012-01-17 to Present

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

1000 Meters x 1000 Meters HDF-EOS5
Combined ASTER and MODIS Emissivity database over Land (CAMEL) Emissivity Monthly Global 0.05Deg V002 002 Terra, Aqua ASTER, MODIS 2000-04-01 to 2017-01-01

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

5600 Meters x 5600 Meters netCDF-4
VIIRS/NPP Vegetation Indices 16-Day L3 Global 500m SIN Grid V002 002 Suomi-NPP VIIRS 2012-01-17 to Present

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

500 Meters x 500 Meters HDF-EOS5
GEDI L2B Canopy Cover and Vertical Profile Metrics Data Global Footprint Level V002 002 ISS GEDI 2019-04-04 to 2023-03-16, 2024-04-26 to Present

N: 54 S: -54 E: 180 W: -180

25 Meters x 25 Meters HDF5
VIIRS/NPP Active Fires 6-Min L2 Swath 375m V002 002 Suomi-NPP VIIRS 2012-01-17 to Present

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

375 Meters x 375 Meters netCDF-4
VIIRS/JPSS1 Active Fires 6-Min L2 Swath 375m V002 002 NOAA-20 VIIRS 2018-01-01 to Present

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

375 Meters x 375 Meters netCDF-4
AMSR-E/Aqua surface soil moisture (LPRM) L2B V002 (LPRM_AMSRE_SOILM2) at GES DISC 002 Aqua AMSR-E 2002-06-19 to 2011-10-03

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

VIIRS/NPP Burned Area Monthly L4 Global 500m SIN Grid V002 002 Suomi-NPP VIIRS 2012-03-01 to Present

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

500 Meters x 500 Meters HDF-EOS5
MISR L2 Land Surface Product subset for the C-MARE Region V002 002 Terra MISR 2004-09-20 to 2004-10-23

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

HDF4
VIIRS/NPP Vegetation Indices Monthly L3 Global 0.05Deg CMG V002 002 Suomi-NPP VIIRS 2012-01-17 to Present

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

5600 Meters x 5600 Meters HDF-EOS5
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VIIRS
Vegetation indices measure the amount of green vegetation over a given area and can be used to assess vegetation health. A commonly-used vegetation index is the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), which uses the difference between near-infrared (NIR) and red reflectance divided by their sum. NDVI values range from -1 to 1. Low values of NDVI generally correspond to barren areas of rock, sand, exposed soils, or snow, while higher NDVI values indicate greener vegetation, including forests, croplands, and wetlands.
VIIRS Vegetation Indices on Earthdata Search

Biosphere Data Tools

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Tool Description Services
AppEEARS The The Application for Extracting and Exploring Analysis Ready Samples (AppEEARS) offers users a simple and efficient way to perform data access and transformation processes. Search and Discovery, Subsetting, Customization, Downloading, Visualization
Biomass Earthdata Dashboard Observe global forest biomass harmonization activity with the Biomass Earthdata Dashboard. Analysis, Search and Discovery, Visualization
CASEI The Catalog of Archived Suborbital Earth Science Investigations (CASEI) is a comprehensive inventory of contextual information for NASA's Earth Science airborne and field campaigns. Search and Discovery, Cataloging
Earthdata Search Earthdata Search enables data discovery, search, comparison, visualization, and access across NASA’s Earth science data holdings. Search and Discovery, Access, Cataloging, Cloud Computing, Downloading
FIRMS The Fire Information for Resource Management System (FIRMS) provides access to satellite imagery, active fire/hotspots, and related products to identify the location, extent, and intensity of wildfire activity. Access, Visualization
Giovanni Giovanni is a web application for accessing, visualizing, and analyzing Earth science remote sensing data without downloading the data. Search and Discovery, Analysis, Access, Visualization, Downloading, Subsetting
OpenAltimetry OpenAltimetry is a map-based visualization tool for exploring surface elevation data across Earth over time. Analysis, Search and Discovery, Visualization
Panoply Panoply is a cross-platform application that plots geo-referenced and other arrays from netCDF, HDF, GRIB, and other datasets. Visualization, Customization, Reformatting, Subsetting, Comparison
POPGRID Viewer POPGRID Viewer explores the intercomparison of population counts and settlement mapping from leading global data sources. Comparison
POWER DAV The POWER project’s Data Access Viewer (DAV) is an interactive web-mapping application that provides access to NASA’s customized solar and meteorological data catalog. Analysis, Downloading, Subsetting, Visualization
SHOWING 10 OF 15

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