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Full catalog/M2TMNXLND
M2TMNXLND·v5.12.4·dataset

Monthly land surface conditions model (MERRA-2)

MERRA-2 tavgM_2d_lnd_Nx: 2d,Monthly mean,Time-Averaged,Single-Level,Assimilation,Land Surface Diagnostics 0.625 x 0.5 degree V5.12.4 (M2TMNXLND) at GES DISC
atmosphere NASA GES_DISC Level 4 active
In plain English

What it measures. Monthly averages of land surface conditions, including runoff, soil wetness at the surface and in the root zone, soil temperature at several depths, and related water flows, on a roughly half-degree grid.

How it's made. Produced by NASA's MERRA-2 reanalysis, which combines a land-and-atmosphere model with satellite-era observations rather than a single instrument.

How & where you'd use it. Useful for studying water availability, drought, and long-term land and climate trends going back to 1980.

What's measured

ATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC RADIATION › LONGWAVE RADIATIONATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC RADIATION › SHORTWAVE RADIATIONLAND SURFACE › SOILS › SOIL HEAT BUDGETAGRICULTURE › SOILS › SOIL HEAT BUDGETAGRICULTURE › SOILS › SOIL TEMPERATURELAND SURFACE › SOILS › SOIL TEMPERATURELAND SURFACE › SOILS › SOIL INFILTRATIONAGRICULTURE › SOILS › SOIL INFILTRATIONLAND SURFACE › SOILS › SOIL MOISTURE/WATER CONTENTLAND SURFACE › SOILS › SOIL MOISTURE/WATER CONTENT › SURFACE SOIL MOISTURELAND SURFACE › SOILS › SOIL MOISTURE/WATER CONTENT › ROOT ZONE SOIL MOISTUREAGRICULTURE › SOILS › SOIL MOISTURE/WATER CONTENTATMOSPHERE › ATMOSPHERIC WATER VAPOR › WATER VAPOR PROCESSES › EVAPORATIONTERRESTRIAL HYDROSPHERE › SURFACE WATER

Coverage & cadence

  • Time span1980-01-01 → ongoing
  • Measured byMERRA-2 (NOT APPLICABLE)
  • Processing levelLevel 4
  • Spatial extent-180, -90, 180, 90
  • StatusACTIVE

What you can do with it

  • Map air pollutants — NO₂, aerosols, ozone
  • Track greenhouse gases and Earth's energy budget
  • Feed weather and air-quality analysis
Official description

M2TMNXLND (or tavgM_2d_lnd_Nx) is a time-averaged 2-dimensional monthly mean data collection in Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications version 2 (MERRA-2). This collection consists of land surface diagnostics, such as baseflow flux, runoff, surface soil wetness, root zone soil wetness, water at surface layer, water at root zone layer, and soil temperature at six layers. The collection also includes variance of certain parameters. MERRA-2 is the latest version of global atmospheric reanalysis for the satellite era produced by NASA Global Modeling and Assimilation Office (GMAO) using the Goddard Earth Observing System Model (GEOS) version 5.12.4. The dataset covers the period of 1980-present with the latency of ~3 weeks after the end of a month. Data Reprocessing: Please check “Records of MERRA-2 Data Reprocessing and Service Changes” linked from the “Documentation” tab on this page. Note that a reprocessed data filename is different from the original file. MERRA-2 Mailing List: Sign up to receive information on reprocessing of data, changing of tools and services, as well as data announcements from GMAO. Contact the GES DISC Help Desk (gsfc-dl-help-disc@mail.nasa.gov) to be added to the list. Questions: If you have a question, please read "MERRA-2 File Specification Document", “MERRA-2 Data Access – Quick Start Guide”, and FAQs linked from the ”Documentation” tab on this page. If that does not answer your question, you may post your question to the NASA Earthdata Forum (forum.earthdata.nasa.gov) or email the GES DISC Help Desk (gsfc-dl-help-disc@mail.nasa.gov).

Get the data

m2tmnxlnd_access.py
import earthaccess
earthaccess.login(strategy="netrc")          # free Earthdata Login

results = earthaccess.search_data(
    short_name="M2TMNXLND",
    version="5.12.4",
    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 GES_DISC
Browsing CMR needs no login. Downloading or streaming bytes needs a free Earthdata Login + the earthaccess package.