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Description

This monthly climatology data set contains a series of land surface parameters simulated from the Noah land-surface model (LSM) for Phase 2 of the North American Land Data Assimilation System (NLDAS-2). The data are in 1/8th degree grid spacing. The temporal resolution is monthly, ranging from January to December. The NLDAS-2 monthly climatology data are the monthly data averaged over forty years (1981 - 2020). The file format is netCDF. The previous version of this dataset (NLDAS_MC 002) was a 30-year average and was stored in GRIB file format.

A brief description about the NLDAS-2 hourly and monthly Noah LSM data can be found from the dataset landing pages for NLDAS_NOAH0125_H_2.0 and NLDAS_NOAH0125_M_2.0.

Details about the NLDAS-2 configuration of the Noah LSM can be found in Xia et al. (2012).

For more information, please see the README Document.

Product Summary

Platforms
Noah-LSM
Instruments
NOT APPLICABLE
Spatial Extent

N: 53 S: 25 E: -67 W: -125

Geographic Region
NORTH AMERICA
Coordinate System
CARTESIAN
Granule Spatial Representation
CARTESIAN
Temporal Extent
1981-01-01 to 2020-12-31
Data Partner
Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (formerly Goddard DAAC), Terrestrial Information Systems Laboratory, Earth Sciences Division, Science and Exploration Directorate, Goddard Space Flight Center, NASA (NASA/GSFC/SED/ESD/TISL/GESDI
Concept ID
C1888969640-GES_DISC
Data State
COMPLETE
Number of Files/Granules
12
Processing Level
4
Published
Updated
Science Keywords
Heat Flux ,
Longwave Radiation ,
Shortwave Radiation ,
Surface Temperature ,
Evaporation ,
Evapotranspiration ,
Rain ,
Snow ,
Canopy Characteristics ,
Leaf Characteristics ,
Vegetation Cover ,
Soil Moisture/Water Content ,
Soil Temperature ,
Albedo ,
Land Surface Temperature ,
Snow Water Equivalent ,
Runoff

Citation

Citation is critically important for dataset documentation and discovery. This dataset is openly shared, without restriction, in accordance with the EOSDIS Data Use and Citation Guidance.

Copy Citation

NLDAS Project. (2020). NLDAS Noah Land Surface Model L4 Monthly Climatology 0.125 x 0.125 degree V2.0 [Data set]. NASA Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center. https://doi.org/10.5067/QLW535AYJ498 Date Accessed: 2025-12-14

Documents

READ-ME

GENERAL DOCUMENTATION

Variables

Variables are a set of physical properties whose values determine the characteristics or behavior of something. For example, temperature and pressure are variables of the atmosphere. Parameters and variables can be used interchangeably. Variable level attributes provide individual information for each variable.

The Name in this table is the variable name. Fill value indicates missing or undefined data points in a variable. Valid range is the range of values the variable can store. Scale factor is used to increase or decrease the size of an object and can be used to correct for distortion. For questions on a specific variable, please use the Earthdata Forum.

Name Description Units Data Type Fill Value Valid Range Scale Factor
ACond ACond m s-1 float32 -9999 N/A 1
Albedo Albedo % float32 -9999 N/A 1
AvgSurfT AvgSurfT K float32 -9999 N/A 1
CanopInt CanopInt kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
CCond CCond m s-1 float32 -9999 N/A 1
climatology_bnds climatology_bnds N/A float64 N/A N/A N/A
ECanop ECanop W m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
ESoil ESoil W m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
Evap Evap kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
GVEG GVEG fraction float32 -9999 N/A 1
LAI LAI unitless float32 -9999 N/A 1
lat lat degrees_north float32 -9999 N/A 1
lon lon degrees_east float32 -9999 N/A 1
LWdown LWdown W m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
LWnet LWnet W m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
PotEvap PotEvap W m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
Qf Qf W m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
Qg Qg W m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
Qh Qh W m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
Qle Qle W m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
Qs Qs kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
Qsb Qsb kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
Qsm Qsm kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
Rainf Rainf kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
RCQ RCQ fraction float32 -9999 N/A 1
RCS RCS fraction float32 -9999 N/A 1
RCSOL RCSOL fraction float32 -9999 N/A 1
RCT RCT fraction float32 -9999 N/A 1
RootMoist RootMoist kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
RSMacr RSMacr 0-1 float32 -9999 N/A 1
RSmin RSmin s m-1 float32 -9999 N/A 1
SMAvail_0_100cm SMAvail_0_100cm % float32 -9999 N/A 1
SMAvail_0_200cm SMAvail_0_200cm % float32 -9999 N/A 1
SMLiq_0_10cm SMLiq_0_10cm kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
SMLiq_10_40cm SMLiq_10_40cm kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
SMLiq_40_100cm SMLiq_40_100cm kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
SMLiq_100_200cm SMLiq_100_200cm kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
SnowDepth SnowDepth m float32 -9999 N/A 1
Snowf Snowf kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
SnowFrac SnowFrac fraction float32 -9999 N/A 1
SoilM_0_10cm SoilM_0_10cm kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
SoilM_0_100cm SoilM_0_100cm kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
SoilM_0_200cm SoilM_0_200cm kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
SoilM_10_40cm SoilM_10_40cm kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
SoilM_40_100cm SoilM_40_100cm kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
SoilM_100_200cm SoilM_100_200cm kg m-2 float32 -9999 N/A 1
SoilT_0_10cm SoilT_0_10cm K float32 -9999 N/A 1
SoilT_10_40cm SoilT_10_40cm K float32 -9999 N/A 1
SoilT_40_100cm SoilT_40_100cm K float32 -9999 N/A 1
Streamflow Streamflow m^3 sec-1 float32 -9999 N/A 1
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