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Full catalog/NASADEM_SHHP
NASADEM_SHHP·v001·dataset

Radar-only elevation map with accuracy (30 m)

NASADEM SRTM-only Height and Height Precision Mosaic Global 1 arc second V001
land NASA LPCLOUD Level 3 Binary
In plain English

What it measures. A worldwide map of land elevation at about 30 meter spacing, paired with a measure of how precise each height estimate is.

How it's made. Reprocessed from the original Space Shuttle radar mission (STS-99) telemetry, improved using ASTER elevation data and ICESat laser ground points for better accuracy and positioning.

How & where you'd use it. A refreshed, radar-only base elevation map useful for terrain mapping, flood and watershed analysis, and any work needing reliable ground heights with a sense of their accuracy.

What's measured

LAND SURFACE › TOPOGRAPHY › TERRAIN ELEVATIONSPECTRAL/ENGINEERING › RADAR › RADAR IMAGERYLAND SURFACE › TOPOGRAPHY › TERRAIN ELEVATION › TOPOGRAPHICAL RELIEF MAPS

Coverage & cadence

  • Time span2000-02-11 → 2000-02-21
  • Measured byOV-105 (SRTM)
  • Processing levelLevel 3
  • Spatial extent-180, -56, 180, 60
  • FormatsBinary
  • StatusCOMPLETE

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 Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center (LP DAAC) is responsible for the archive and distribution of NASA Making Earth System Data Records for Use in Research Environments ([MEaSUREs](https://earthdata.nasa.gov/about/competitive-programs/measures)) Digital Elevation Model (DEM) version 1 (NASADEM_SHHP) dataset, which provides Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) global elevation height data at 1 arc second spacing. NASADEM data products were derived from original telemetry data from SRTM, a collaboration between NASA and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA), as well as participation from the German and Italian space agencies. SRTM's primary focus was to generate a near-global DEM of the Earth using radar interferometry. It was a primary component of the payload on space shuttle _Endeavour_ during its STS-99 mission, which was launched on February 11, 2000, and flew for 11 days. In addition to Terra Advanced Spaceborne Thermal and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) Global Digital Elevation Model (GDEM) Version 2 data, NASADEM also relied on Ice, Cloud, and Land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) ground control points of its lidar shots to improve surface elevation measurements that led to improved geolocation accuracy. Other reprocessing improvements include the conversion to geoid reference and the use of GDEMs and Advanced Land Observing Satellite Panchromatic Remote-sensing Instrument for Stereo Mapping (PRISM) AW3D30 DEM, and interpolation for void filling. NASADEM are distributed in 1 degree latitude by 1 degree longitude tiles and consist of all land between 60° N and 56° S latitude. This accounts for about 80% of Earth's total landmass. NASADEM_SHHP data product layers include SRTM-only floating-point DEM and height error. A low-resolution browse image showing the SRTM-only elevation is also available for each NASADEM_SHHP granule.

Get the data

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

results = earthaccess.search_data(
    short_name="NASADEM_SHHP",
    version="001",
    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 LPCLOUD
Browsing CMR needs no login. Downloading or streaming bytes needs a free Earthdata Login + the earthaccess package.