MODIS (Terra/Aqua) Land Surface Temperature (Day | Night)

Temporal Coverage: 24 February 2000 - present (Terra); 3 July 2002 - present (Aqua)

The MODIS Land Surface Temperature layer shows the temperature of the land surface in Kelvin (K). This measurement differs from air temperature measurements as it provides the temperature of whatever is on the surface of the earth for example, bare sand in the desert, ice and snow covered area, a leaf covered tree canopy and even the temperature of man-made buildings and roads. Land Surface Temperature is useful for monitoring changes in weather and climate patterns and used in agriculture to allow farmers to evaluate water requirements for wheat, or determine frost damage in orange groves.

The MODIS Land Surface Temperature product is available from both Terra (MOD11) and Aqua (MYD11) satellites. The sensor and imagery resolution is 1 km, and the temporal resolution is daily.

References: NASA Earth Observations - Land Surface Temperature; ICESS - MODIS Land Surface Temperature Group; MODIS - ATBD MOD11; LP DAAC - MYD11L2; LP DAAC - MOD11L2.

MODIS (Terra/Aqua) Land Surface Temperature (Level 3, Daily, Day | Night)

Temporal coverage: 26 February 2000 - present (Terra); July 2002 - present (Aqua)

The MOD11A1/MYD11A1 Version 6 product provides daily per-pixel Land Surface Temperature and Emissivity (LST&E) with 1 kilometer (km) spatial resolution in a 1,200 by 1,200 km grid. The pixel temperature value is derived from the Terra/Aqua MODIS LST&E swath product. Above 30 degrees latitude, some pixels may have multiple observations where the criteria for clear-sky are met. When this occurs, the pixel value is a result of the average of all qualifying observations. The Land Surface Temperature Day layer is a representation of daytime LST; and the Land Surface Temperature Night layer is a representation of nighttime LST

Reference: LP DAAC - MOD11A1 Version 6; LP DAAC - MYD11A1 Version 6

MODIS (Terra/Aqua) Land Surface Temperature (Level 3, 8-Day, Day | Night)

Temporal coverage: 26 February 2000 - present (Terra); July 2002 - present (Aqua)

The MOD11A2/MYD11A2 Version 6 product provides an average 8-day per-pixel Land Surface Temperature and Emissivity (LST&E) with a 1 kilometer (km) spatial resolution in a 1,200 by 1,200 km grid. Each pixel value in the MYD11A2 is a simple average of all the corresponding Terra/Aqua MODIS LST&E daily pixels collected within that 8-day period. The 8-day compositing period was chosen because twice that period is the exact ground track repeat period of the Terra and Aqua platforms. The Land Surface Temperature Day layer is a representation of daytime LST; the Land Surface Temperature Night layer is a representation of nighttime LST.

Reference: LP DAAC - MOD11A2 Version 6; LP DAAC - MYD11A2 Version 6

MODIS (Terra/Aqua) Land Surface Temperature (Level 3, Monthly, Day | Night)

Temporal coverage: January 2003 - present (Terra); July 2002 - present (Aqua)

The MOD11C3/MYD11C3 Version 6 product provides monthly Land Surface Temperature and Emissivity (LST&E) values in a 0.05 degree (5,600 meters at the equator) latitude/longitude Climate Modeling Grid (CMG). A CMG granule is a geographic grid with 7,200 columns and 3,600 rows representing the entire globe. The LST&E values in the MYD11C3 product are derived by compositing and averaging the values from the corresponding month of Aqua MODIS LST&E daily files. The Land Surface Temperature Day layer is a representation of daytime LST; the Land Surface Temperature Night layer is a representation of nighttime LST.

Reference: LP DAAC - MOD11C3 Version 6; LP DAAC - MYD11C3 Version 6