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Glaciers/Ice Sheets Data Access and Tools
Glaciers and ice sheets data from NASA range from frequently updated high-resolution instrument imagery to radar altimeter measurements. Our datasets and tools help users find and integrate the data they need to measure the location, size, and other characteristics of glaciers and ice sheets.
Glaciers/Ice Sheets Datasets
| Dataset Sort descending | Version | Platform | Instrument | Temporal Extent | Spatial Extent | Spatial Resolution | Data Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MERRA-2 tavg3_2d_glc_Nx: 2d,3-Hourly,Time-Averaged,Single-Level,Assimilation,Land Ice Surface Diagnostics 0.625 x 0.5 degree V5.12.4 (M2T3NXGLC) at GES DISC | 5.12.4 | MERRA-2 | NOT APPLICABLE | 1980-01-01 to Present |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
0.625 Decimal Degrees x 0.5 Decimal Degrees | |
| MERRA-2 tavgM_2d_glc_Nx: 2d,Monthly mean,Time-Averaged,Single-Level,Assimilation,Land Ice Surface Diagnostics 0.625 x 0.5 degree V5.12.4 (M2TMNXGLC) at GES DISC | 5.12.4 | MERRA-2 | NOT APPLICABLE | 1980-01-01 to Present |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
0.625 Decimal Degrees x 0.5 Decimal Degrees | |
| MERRA-2 tavgU_2d_glc_Nx: 2d,diurnal,Time-Averaged,Single-Level,Assimilation,Land Ice Surface Diagnostics 0.625 x 0.5 degree V5.12.4 (M2TUNXGLC) at GES DISC | 5.12.4 | MERRA-2 | NOT APPLICABLE | 1980-01-01 to Present |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
0.625 Decimal Degrees x 0.5 Decimal Degrees | |
| MODIS/Terra+Aqua BRDF Model Parameters Daily L3 Global 1km SIN Grid V061 | 061 | Terra, Aqua | MODIS | 2000-02-24 to Present |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
1000 Meters x 1000 Meters | HDF-EOS2 |
| MODIS/Terra+Aqua Land Surface BRF Daily L2G Global 500m, 1km and 10km SIN Grid V006 | 006 | Terra, Aqua | MODIS | 2000-02-26 to 2023-02-17 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
500 Meters x 500 Meters | HDF-EOS2 |
| NISAR Beta Geocoded Pixel Offsets (Version 1) | 1 | NISAR | L-SAR, S-SAR | 2025-10-01 to Present |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
HDF5, XML, YAML, PNG, KML, CSV, PDF | |
| NISAR Beta Geocoded Polarimetric Covariance Product (Version 1) | 1 | NISAR | L-SAR, S-SAR | 2025-10-01 to Present |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
HDF5, PNG, XML, PDF, CSV, KML, YAML | |
| NISAR Beta Geocoded Single Look Complex Product (Version 1) | 1 | NISAR | L-SAR, S-SAR | 2025-10-01 to Present |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
HDF5, PNG, XML, PDF, CSV, KML, YAML | |
| NISAR Beta Geocoded Unwrapped Interferogram Product (Version 1) | 1 | NISAR | L-SAR, S-SAR | 2025-10-01 to Present |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
HDF5, PNG, XML, PDF, CSV, KML, YAML | |
| NISAR Beta Range Doppler Pixel Offsets (Version 1) | 1 | NISAR | L-SAR, S-SAR | 2025-10-01 to Present |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
HDF5, XML, YAML, PNG, KML, CSV, PDF | |
| NISAR Beta Range Doppler Single Look Complex Product (Version 1) | 1 | NISAR | L-SAR, S-SAR | 2025-10-01 to Present |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
HDF5, XML, PNG, PDF, CSV, KML, YAML | |
| NISAR Beta Range Doppler Unwrapped Interferogram Product (Version 1) | 1 | NISAR | L-SAR, S-SAR | 2025-10-01 to Present |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
HDF5, XML, YAML, PNG, KML, CSV, PDF | |
| NISAR Beta Range Doppler Wrapped Interferogram Product (Version 1) | 1 | NISAR | L-SAR, S-SAR | 2025-10-01 to Present |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
HDF5, XML, YAML, PNG, KML, CSV, PDF | |
| OMG Glacial Elevations from GLISTIN-A Ver. 1 | 1 | Airborne | GLISTIN-A | 2015-07-25 to 2019-11-30 |
N: 83.6 S: 59.1 E: -6.9 W: -73.6 |
0 Decimal Degrees x 0 Decimal Degrees | NETCDF |
| OPERA Coregistered Single-Look Complex from Sentinel-1 Static Layers validated product (Version 1) | 1 | Sentinel-1A, Sentinel-1B | C-SAR | 2014-04-03 to Present | HDF5, XML | ||
| OPERA Coregistered Single-Look Complex from Sentinel-1 validated product (Version 1) | 1 | Sentinel-1A, Sentinel-1B, Sentinel-1C | C-SAR | 2016-07-01 to Present | HDF5, XML | ||
| OPERA Radiometric Terrain Corrected SAR Backscatter from Sentinel-1 Static Layers validated product (Version 1) | 1 | Sentinel-1A, Sentinel-1B | C-SAR | 2014-04-03 to Present |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
GeoTIFF, XML | |
| OPERA Radiometric Terrain Corrected SAR Backscatter from Sentinel-1 validated product (Version 1) | 1 | Sentinel-1A, Sentinel-1B, Sentinel-1C | C-SAR | 2016-04-14 to Present |
N: 90 S: -60 E: 180 W: -180 |
HDF5, GeoTIFF, XML | |
| Pre-IceBridge ATM L1B Qfit Elevation and Return Strength V001 | 1 | DHC-6, NASA DC-8, P-3A, P-3A ORION, P-3B | ATM | 1993-06-23 to 2008-10-30 |
N: 90 S: 60 E: 180 W: -180 N: -46 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
Binary | |
| Pre-IceBridge ATM L2 Icessn Elevation, Slope, and Roughness V001 | 1 | DHC-6, P-3A, P-3A ORION, P-3B | ATM | 1993-06-23 to 2008-10-30 |
N: -46 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 N: 90 S: 60 E: 180 W: -180 |
ASCII | |
| Pre-IceBridge MCoRDS L2 Ice Thickness V001 | 1 | DC-8, DHC-6, P-3A, P-3A ORION, P-3B | MCoRDS, ACORDS, ATM, ICORDS | 1993-06-23 to 2007-09-23 |
N: 90 S: 60 E: 180 W: -180 N: -53 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
CSV | |
| RADARSAT-1 Level 0 Product | 1 | RADARSAT-1 | SAR | 1996-02-01 to 2009-03-17 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
||
| RADARSAT-1 Level 1 Product | 1 | RADARSAT-1 | SAR | 1996-02-01 to 2009-03-17 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
||
| Radiostratigraphy and Age Structure of the Greenland Ice Sheet V001 | 1 | DC-8, P-3B | ACORDS, ICORDS, MCRDS, MCoRDS | 1993-06-23 to 2013-04-26 |
N: 81.51 S: 58.91 E: 6.62 W: -88.33 |
netCDF-4, XML, MAT | |
| Radiostratigraphy and Age Structure of the Greenland Ice Sheet V002 | 2 | C-130, DHC-6, NASA DC-8, P-3B, WP-3D ORION | MCoRDS, ACORDS, MCRDS, ICORDS | 1993-06-24 to 2019-05-16 |
N: 83.9 S: 58.9 E: -10.7 W: -73.5 |
5 Kilometers x 5 Kilometers | netCDF-4 |
Featured Observation Glaciers/Ice Sheets Method: ASTER
The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) is a high spatial resolution instrument aboard the Terra satellite. ASTER captures images of Earth in 14 different wavelengths from visible to thermal infrared light as well as provides a Global Digital Elevation Model (GDEM) of the planet's land surface with 30-meter resolution. ASTER data can be used to create detailed visualizations and maps of land surface temperature, emissivity, reflectance, and elevation including images of glaciers.
The final processing of Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) data will make its archive more accessible to users.
8 MIN READ
The Global Land Ice Measurements from Space (GLIMS) initiative uses satellite data to track glacier changes, providing vital data for climate and hazard studies.
See ASTER instrument images revealing the transformation of South Korea's Mount Gariwang for the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Version 3 of the ASTER Global Digital Elevation Model (GDEM) provides new features and sharper imagery.
Glaciers/Ice Sheets Data Tools
| Tool Sort descending | Description | Services | |
|---|---|---|---|
| GLIMS Glacier Database | Visualize and download data from the GLIMS Glacier Database using the map-based GLIMS Glacier Viewer or search and download data using custom parameters in the GLIMS Text Search Interface. | Downloading, Search and Discovery, Visualization | |
| RTC Stack Processor | The radiometric terrain correction (RTC) stack processor tool facilitates time-series analysis of such phenomena as flooding events, deforestation, or glacier retreat. | Analysis, Processing, Search and Discovery, Visualization | |
| Vertex | Vertex is a graphical search interface for finding synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data. | Search and Discovery, Access, Downloading, Processing, Subsetting |
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Frequently Asked Questions
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