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Full catalog/VNP43D62
VNP43D62·v002·dataset

How much shortwave-infrared light the land reflects (Suomi-NPP, daily)

VIIRS/NPP BRDF/Albedo BSA at Solar Noon Band M11 Daily L3 Global 30ArcSec CMG V002
land NASA LPCLOUD Level 3 active HDF-EOS5
In plain English

What it measures. Daily global maps of how much shortwave-infrared (M11) light the land surface reflects, given as black-sky albedo (reflectance under direct sunlight without scattered skylight).

How it's made. Computed from 16 days of VIIRS observations on the Suomi-NPP satellite, weighted toward the ninth day, on a roughly 1-kilometer global climate-modeling grid with one data layer per file.

How & where you'd use it. A specialized building block for climate models and energy-balance research; typically used alongside the rest of the VIIRS albedo suite rather than alone.

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 Black-Sky Albedo for Band M11 (VNP43D62) 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. VNP43D54 through VNP43D79 are the albedo products of the VNP43D BRDF/Albedo product suite. Black-sky albedo (BSA) and white-sky albedo (WSA) values are provided for the nine VIIRS moderate resolution bands (M1 through M5, M7, M8, M10, and M11) along with the visible, near-infrared (NIR), and shortwave bands included in the [VNP43MA3](https://doi.org/10.5067/VIIRS/VNP43MA3.002) product. In addition to the bands included in VNP43MA3, this product suite includes albedo values for the VIIRS Day/Night Band (DNB). The black-sky albedo (directional hemispherical reflectance) is defined as albedo in the absence of a diffuse component and is a function of solar zenith angle. White-sky albedo (bihemispherical reflectance) is defined as albedo in the absence of a direct component when the diffuse component is isotropic. Details regarding methodology are available on the [VNP43MA3](https://doi.org/10.5067/VIIRS/VNP43MA3.002) product page and in the Algorithm Theoretical Basis Document (ATBD). VNP43D62 is the BSA for VIIRS band M11 (2.25 μm). 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

vnp43d62_access.py
import earthaccess
earthaccess.login(strategy="netrc")          # free Earthdata Login

results = earthaccess.search_data(
    short_name="VNP43D62",
    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.