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Description

The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) Expedited Level 1A Reconstructed Unprocessed Instrument Data (AST_L1AE) global product contains reconstructed, unprocessed instrument digital data derived from the acquired telemetry streams of the telescopes: Visible and Near Infrared (VNIR), Shortwave Infrared (SWIR), and Thermal Infrared (TIR). This data product is similar to the (AST_L1A) with a few notable exceptions. These include:

  • The AST_L1AE is available for download within 48 hours of acquisition in support of field calibration and validation efforts, in addition to emergency response for natural disasters where the quick turn-around time from acquisition to availability would prove beneficial in initial damage or impact assessments.
  • The registration quality of the AST_L1AE is likely to be lower than the AST_L1A, and may vary from scene to scene.
  • The AST_L1AE data product does not contain the VNIR 3B (aft-viewing) Band.
  • This dataset does not have short-term calibration for the Thermal Infrared (TIR) sensor.
  • The AST_L1AE data product is only available for download 30 days after acquisition. It is then removed and reprocessed into an AST_L1A product.

Known Issues

  • TIR bands: Acquisitions for TIR bands ended on January 16, 2026, at 05:10:45 UTC, when the ASTER TIR instrument was permanently turned off due to power limitations on the Terra spacecraft. More information is available in this NASA Science News Brief.
  • Data acquisition gaps: On November 28, 2024, one of Terra's power-transmitting shunt units failed. As a result, there was insufficient power to maintain functionality of the ASTER instrument. ASTER resumed acquisitions for the VNIR bands on January 18, 2025, and for the TIR bands on April 15, 2025. Users should note the data gap in ASTER acquisitions from November 28, 2024, through January 16, 2025, for VNIR observations, and a gap from November 28, 2024, through April 15, 2025, for TIR acquisitions.
  • SWIR bands: ASTER SWIR detectors are no longer functioning as of January 12, 2009, due to anomalously high SWIR detector temperatures.
  • SWIR anomaly: Users are advised that ASTER SWIR data acquired from April 2008 to January 11, 2009, exhibit anomalous saturation of values and anomalous striping. This effect is also present for some prior acquisition periods. Please refer to the ASTER SWIR User Advisory for more details.

Product Summary

Platforms
Terra
Instruments
ASTER
Spatial Extent

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

Spatial Resolution
15 Meters x 15 Meters
30 Meters x 30 Meters
90 Meters x 90 Meters
Location
GLOBAL
Coordinate System
CARTESIAN
Granule Spatial Representation
GEODETIC
Temporal Extent
2000-03-04 to Present
Temporal Resolution
1 Day
Data Partner
Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center (LP DAAC) ,
Ground Data System, Japan Space Systems, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry, Japan (JP/METI/AIST/JSS/GDS)
Concept ID
C179460405-LPDAAC_ECS
Data State
ACTIVE
Number of Files/Granules
0
Processing Level
1A
Published
Updated
Science Keywords
REFLECTED INFRARED ,
THERMAL INFRARED ,
VISIBLE IMAGERY

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

NASA/METI/AIST/Japan Spacesystems and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team. (2001). Expedited ASTER Level 1A Data Set - Reconstructed, unprocessed instrument data [Data set]. NASA Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center. https://doi.org/10.5067/ASTER/AST_L1AE.003 Date Accessed: 2026-03-17

Documents

Publications Citing This Dataset

Filters
Title Year Author
Multi-decadal glacier area and mass balance change in the southern Peruvian Andes Taylor, L. S.
Using spectral indices and terrain attribute datasets and their combination in the prediction of cadmium content in agricultural soil Agyeman, P. C.
The Cerro Uyarani Metamorphic Complex on the Bolivian Altiplano—New constraints on the tectonic evolution of the Central Andean basement between de Oliveira, J. R.
Analysis of regional changes in geodetic mass balance for all Caucasus glaciers over the past two decades Tielidze, L. G.
Co-registration methods and error analysis for four decades (1979–2018) of glacier elevation changes in the southern Patagonian icefield Vacaflor, P.
High-precision measurement of height differences from shadows in non-stereo imagery—New methodology and accuracy assessment Giacaman, C. A. R.
Accelerated global glacier mass loss in the early twenty-first century Hugonnet, R.
Glacier-related hazards along the international Karakoram highway: Status and future perspectives Gao, Y.
Implication of remote sensing data under GIS environment for appraisal of irrigation system performance Rizvi, S. A.
Identification of the characteristic scale of fine ground objects: A case study of the core observation area in the middle reaches of the Heihe river basin Wu, X.
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Variables

The table below lists the variables contained within a single granule for this dataset. Variables often contain observed or derived geophysical measurements collected from a variety of sources, including remote sensing instruments on satellite and airborne platforms, field campaigns, in situ measurements, and model outputs. The terms variable, parameter, scientific data set, layer, and band have been used across NASA’s Earth science disciplines; however, variable is the designated nomenclature in NASA’s Common Metadata Repository (CMR). Variable metadata attributes such as Name, Description, Units, Data Type, Fill Value, Valid Range, and Scale Factor allow users to efficiently process and analyze the data. The full range of attributes may not be applicable to all variables. Additional information on variable attributes is typically available in the data, user guide, and/or other product documentation.

For questions on a specific variable, please use the Earthdata Forum.

Name Description Units Data Type Fill Value Valid Range Scale Factor Offset
SWIR_Band4 30 meter resolution SWIR Band 4 (1.600 to 1.700 µm) N/A uint8 N/A 0 to 255 N/A N/A
SWIR_Band5 30 meter resolution SWIR Band 5 (2.145 to 2.185 µm) N/A uint8 N/A 0 to 255 N/A N/A
SWIR_Band6 30 meter resolution SWIR Band 6 (2.185 to 2.225 µm) N/A uint8 N/A 0 to 255 N/A N/A
SWIR_Band7 30 meter resolution SWIR Band 7 (2.235 to 2.285 µm) N/A uint8 N/A 0 to 255 N/A N/A
SWIR_Band8 30 meter resolution SWIR Band 8 (2.295 to 2.365 µm) N/A uint8 N/A 0 to 255 N/A N/A
SWIR_Band9 30 meter resolution SWIR Band 9 (2.360 to 2.430 µm) N/A uint8 N/A 0 to 255 N/A N/A
TIR_Band10 90 meter resolution TIR Band 10 (8.125 to 8.475 µm) N/A uint16 N/A 0 to 65535 N/A N/A
TIR_Band11 90 meter resolution TIR Band 11 (8.475 to 8.825 µm) N/A uint16 N/A 0 to 65535 N/A N/A
TIR_Band 12 90 meter resolution TIR Band 12 (8.925 to 9.275 µm) N/A uint16 N/A 0 to 65535 N/A N/A
TIR_Band 13 90 meter resolution TIR Band 13 (10.25 to 10.95 µm) N/A uint16 N/A 0 to 65535 N/A N/A
TIR_Band 14 90 meter resolution TIR Band 14 (10.95 to 11.65 µm) N/A uint16 N/A 0 to 65535 N/A N/A
VNIR_Band1 15 meter resolution VNIR Band 1 (0.52 to 0.60 µm) N/A uint8 N/A 0 to 255 N/A N/A
VNIR_Band2 15 meter resolution VNIR Band 2 (0.63 to 0.69 µm) N/A uint8 N/A 0 to 255 N/A N/A
VNIR_Band3N 15 meter resolution VNIR Band 3 (0.78 to 0.86 µm) N/A uint8 N/A 0 to 255 N/A N/A
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