The Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) "Uncorrected Brightness Temperature 36 km" layer displays brightness temperatures (TBs) posted to a 36 km EASE-Grid 2.0 and uncorrected for the presence of water in Kelvin (K) for the vertical (V) polarization of the fore scan from the SMAP radiometer. At the L-band frequency used by SMAP, the TB of the land surface is proportional to its emissivity multiplied by its physical temperature.

The SMAP spacecraft carries two instruments, a radar (active) and a radiometer (passive), that together make global measurements of land surface soil moisture and freeze/thaw state. It is useful for monitoring and predicting natural hazards such as floods and droughts, understanding the linkages between Earth’s water, energy and carbon cycles, and reducing uncertainties in predicting weather and climate.

References: SMAP L1C Radiometer Half-Orbit 36 km EASE-Grid Brightness Temperatures

Data field: cell_tb_v_fore