Temporal Coverage: 31 January 2013 - present
The MODIS (Terra and Aqua) Combined Value-Added Aerosol Optical Depth layer is a value-added layer based on MODIS Level 2 aerosol products. The layer can give a quick, synoptic view of the level of aerosol in the atmosphere.. MODIS Aerosol Optical Depth (or Aerosol Optical Thickness) layer indicates the level at which particles in the air (aerosols) prevent light from traveling through the atmosphere. Aerosols absorb and scatter incoming sunlight, which reduces visibility and increases the optical depth. An optical depth of less than 0.1 indicates a clear sky with maximum visibility, and a value of 1 indicates the presence of aerosols so dense that people would have difficulty seeing the Sun. Aerosols have an effect on human health, weather and the climate. Sources of aerosols include pollution from factories, smoke from fires, dust from dust storms, sea salts, and volcanic ash and smog. Aerosols compromise human health when inhaled by people with asthma or other respiratory illnesses. Aerosols also have an affect on the weather and climate by cooling or warming the earth, helping or preventing clouds from forming.
This level 3 gridded product is designed for quantitative applications including aerosol data assimilation and model validation. This layer is useful for aerosol forecasting communities such as the United States Navy Fleet Numerical Meteorology and Oceanography Center (FNMOC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Global Modeling Assimilation Office (GMAO), University research groups and support for field/aircraft campaigns.
The MODIS Combined Value-Added Aerosol Optical Depth layer is a near real-time layer and available as a combined Terra satellite and Aqua satellite layer (MCDAODHD). The sensor resolution is 0.5 degrees, imagery resolution is 2 km, and the temporal resolution is daily.
References: NASA Earthdata - NRT Value-Added MODIS AOD Product; GCMD Entry: MCDAODHD