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Full catalog/VNP43D52
VNP43D52·v002·dataset

Whether reflected-sunlight pixels had snow (Suomi-NPP, daily)

VIIRS/NPP BRDF/Albedo Snow Status Daily L3 Global 30ArcSec CMG V002
land NASA LPCLOUD Level 3 active HDF-EOS5
In plain English

What it measures. For each roughly 1-km patch of land, a simple yes-or-no flag saying whether snow was on the ground when the reflected-sunlight measurement was taken, labeled either 'snow-free' or 'snow.'

How it's made. Derived from 16 days of VIIRS observations aboard the Suomi-NPP satellite, refreshed daily and laid out on a global grid built for climate models.

How & where you'd use it. A supporting flag that tells scientists whether a surface-reflectance value reflects bare ground or snow, which matters for studies of climate, energy balance, and seasonal snow.

What's measured

LAND SURFACE › SURFACE RADIATIVE PROPERTIES › ALBEDOLAND SURFACE › SURFACE RADIATIVE PROPERTIES › ANISOTROPYLAND SURFACE › SURFACE RADIATIVE PROPERTIES › REFLECTANCE

Coverage & cadence

  • Time span2012-01-19 → ongoing
  • Measured bySuomi-NPP (VIIRS)
  • Processing levelLevel 3
  • Spatial extent-180, -90, 180, 90
  • FormatsHDF-EOS5
  • 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 NASA/NOAA Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (Suomi NPP) Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function (BRDF) and Albedo Snow Status product (VNP43D52) is produced daily using 16 days of data at 30 arc second (1,000 meter) resolution. Data are temporally weighted to the ninth day, which is reflected in the file name. The VNP43D product suite is provided in a Climate Modeling Grid (CMG), which covers the entire globe for use in climate simulation models. Due to the large file size, each VNP43D product contains just one data layer for each of the parameters included in the [VNP43MA2](https://doi.org/10.5067/VIIRS/VNP43MA2.002) product. VNP43D40 through VNP43D53 are the 30 arc second BRDF/Albedo Quality values, the Local Solar Noon values, the Valid Observations of the moderate resolution bands (M1 through M5, M7, M8, M10, and M11) plus the Day/Night Band (DNB), the Snow Status, and the Uncertainty. Details regarding methodology are available on the [VNP43MA2](https://doi.org/10.5067/VIIRS/VNP43MA2.002) product page and in the Algorithm Theoretical Basis Document (ATBD). VNP43D52 contains the snow status quality layer, which identifies each pixel as either “Snow-free Albedo Retrieved” or “Snow Albedo Retrieved” for the acquisition period. Known Issues * For complete information about known issues please refer to the [MODIS/VIIRS Land Quality Assessment website](https://landweb.modaps.eosdis.nasa.gov/knownissue).

Get the data

vnp43d52_access.py
import earthaccess
earthaccess.login(strategy="netrc")          # free Earthdata Login

results = earthaccess.search_data(
    short_name="VNP43D52",
    version="002",
    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.