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Full catalog/AST_L1AE
AST_L1AE·v003·dataset

Quick-look unprocessed instrument data (ASTER)

ASTER Expedited L1A Reconstructed Unprocessed Instrument Data V003
land NASA LPDAAC_ECS Level 1A active HDF-EOS2
In plain English

What it measures. Raw, reconstructed instrument data from ASTER's three telescopes (visible/near-infrared, shortwave-infrared, and thermal-infrared), as digital values straight from the satellite telemetry.

How it's made. Produced from ASTER aboard NASA's Terra satellite as an expedited Level-1A product, available within 48 hours of capture but with lower registration quality than the standard version.

How & where you'd use it. A fast-turnaround raw input meant for field calibration and emergency response after natural disasters; it is later removed and reprocessed into the standard ASTER product. Note: ASTER's thermal bands stopped collecting in January 2026.

What's measured

SPECTRAL/ENGINEERING › INFRARED WAVELENGTHS › REFLECTED INFRAREDSPECTRAL/ENGINEERING › INFRARED WAVELENGTHS › THERMAL INFRAREDSPECTRAL/ENGINEERING › VISIBLE WAVELENGTHS › VISIBLE IMAGERY

Coverage & cadence

  • Time span2000-03-04 → ongoing
  • Measured byTerra (ASTER)
  • Processing levelLevel 1A
  • Spatial extent-180, -90, 180, 90
  • FormatsHDF-EOS2
  • StatusACTIVE

What you can do with it

  • Track deforestation, fire scars and land-cover change
  • Monitor crop and vegetation health (NDVI/EVI)
  • Map how built-up vs. green an area is over time
Official description

The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) Expedited Level 1A Reconstructed Unprocessed Instrument Data (AST_L1AE) global product contains reconstructed, unprocessed instrument digital data derived from the acquired telemetry streams of the telescopes: Visible and Near Infrared (VNIR), Shortwave Infrared (SWIR), and Thermal Infrared (TIR). This data product is similar to the ([AST_L1A](http://doi.org/10.5067/ASTER/AST_L1A.003)) with a few notable exceptions. These include: * The AST_L1AE is available for download within 48 hours of acquisition in support of field calibration and validation efforts, in addition to emergency response for natural disasters where the quick turn-around time from acquisition to availability would prove beneficial in initial damage or impact assessments. * The registration quality of the AST_L1AE is likely to be lower than the AST_L1A, and may vary from scene to scene. * The AST_L1AE data product does not contain the VNIR 3B (aft-viewing) Band. * This dataset does not have short-term calibration for the Thermal Infrared (TIR) sensor. * The AST_L1AE data product is only available for download 30 days after acquisition. It is then removed and reprocessed into an AST_L1A product. Known Issues * TIR bands: Acquisitions for TIR bands ended on January 16, 2026, at 05:10:45 UTC, when the ASTER TIR instrument was permanently turned off due to power limitations on the Terra spacecraft. More information is available in this [NASA Science News Brief](https://science.nasa.gov/blogs/science-news/2026/02/12/terra-adjusts-instrument-operations-to-extend-mission-life/). * Data acquisition gaps: On November 28, 2024, one of Terra's power-transmitting shunt units failed. As a result, there was insufficient power to maintain functionality of the ASTER instrument. ASTER resumed acquisitions for the VNIR bands on January 18, 2025, and for the TIR bands on April 15, 2025. Users should note the data gap in ASTER acquisitions from November 28, 2024, through January 16, 2025, for VNIR observations, and a gap from November 28, 2024, through April 15, 2025, for TIR acquisitions. * SWIR bands: ASTER SWIR detectors are no longer functioning as of January 12, 2009, due to anomalously high SWIR detector temperatures. * SWIR anomaly: Users are advised that ASTER SWIR data acquired from April 2008 to January 11, 2009, exhibit anomalous saturation of values and anomalous striping. This effect is also present for some prior acquisition periods. Please refer to the [ASTER SWIR User Advisory](https://lpdaac.usgs.gov/documents/1661/ASTER_SWIR_User_Advisory_Jan_12_2009.pdf) for more details.

Get the data

ast_l1ae_access.py
import earthaccess
earthaccess.login(strategy="netrc")          # free Earthdata Login

results = earthaccess.search_data(
    short_name="AST_L1AE",
    version="003",
    bounding_box=(-122.5, 37.2, -121.8, 37.9),  # your area (W,S,E,N)
    temporal=("2024-01-01", "2024-12-31"),       # your dates
)
files = earthaccess.open(results)   # stream straight from LPDAAC_ECS
Browsing CMR needs no login. Downloading or streaming bytes needs a free Earthdata Login + the earthaccess package.