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Land Use/Land Cover Data Access and Tools

NASA data range from global assessments of snow cover albedo to food insecurity cropland extent measurements. Our datasets and tools help researchers translate these interconnected data points into actionable knowledge.

Commonly Used Land Cover/Crop Extent Data at a Glance

Spatial Resolution	Spatial Coverage	Temporal Resolution	Temporal Coverage	Spectral Resolution	Satellite/ Platform	Sensor(s)/ Model Name	Observation or Model	File Format
500 m	Global	1-2 days	2001-2021	36 bands ranging from 0.4 µm to 14.4 µm	Terra and Aqua	MODIS	Observation	HDF-EOS
30 m, 90 m, 1 km	Regional datasets	Multi-year	2007-2016 (varies)	Varies	Derived from Landsat data	GFSAD	Observation	GeoTIFF
30 m	Global	Yearly	2001-2019	Varies	Derived from Landsat data	GLanCE	Observation	GeoTIFF

Land Use/Land Cover Datasets

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Dataset Sort descending	Version	Platform	Instrument	Temporal Extent	Spatial Extent	Spatial Resolution	Data Format
Mechanistic Module for Soil Nitrogen Emissions for CMAQ Model, North America, 2011	1	MODELS	Computer	2011-04-21 to 2011-04-21	N: 51.5525 S: 25.0697 E: -59.1328 W: -128.742		netCDF-3
METOP-B AVHRR Atmospherically Corrected Normalized Difference Vegetation Index Daily L3 Global 0.05 Deg. CMG	6	METOP-B	AVHRR	2013-01-16 to Present	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	0.05 Decimal Degrees x 0.05 Decimal Degrees	HDF-EOS
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment: MA Biodiversity	1.0	MODELS	Computer	1950-01-01 to 2001-12-31	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180		Excel, Shapefile, Grid
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment: MA Climate and Land Cover	1.0	MODELS	Computer	1901-01-01 to 2000-12-31	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180		Grid, Shapefile
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment: MA Rapid Land Cover Change	1.0	MODELS	Computer	1901-01-01 to 2015-12-31	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180		Grid, Shapefile
MODIS-derived Annual Vegetation Resilience, 2000-2019	1	MODELS, Terra	Computer, MODIS	2000-01-01 to 2019-12-31	N: 76.2257 S: 50.259 E: -98.9735 W: -170.006		COG
MODIS-derived Biophysical Parameters for 5-km Land Cover, North America, 2000-2012	1	NOT APPLICABLE	NOT APPLICABLE	2000-01-01 to 2012-12-31	N: 60 S: 20 E: -40 W: -160		netCDF-4 classic
MODIS-derived Vegetation and Albedo Parameters for Agroecosystem-Climate Modeling	1	COMPUTERS, Aqua, Terra	Computer, MODIS	2003-01-01 to 2010-12-31	N: 49.1525 S: 15.1525 E: -51.9489 W: -139.051		netCDF-4 classic
MODIS/Terra EVI Phenology annual L4 250m SIN Grid	6	Terra	MODIS	2001-01-01 to 2017-01-01	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	500 Meters x 500 Meters	HDF-EOS
MODIS/Terra EVI Phenology annual L4 500m SIN Grid	6	Terra	MODIS	2001-01-01 to 2017-01-01	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	500 Meters x 500 Meters	HDF-EOS
MODIS/Terra Gap-Filled, Smoothed EVI 8-Day L4 250m SIN Grid	6	Terra	MODIS	2001-01-01 to 2017-12-27	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	500 Meters x 500 Meters	HDF-EOS
MODIS/Terra Gap-Filled, Smoothed EVI 8-Day L4 500m SIN Grid	6	Terra	MODIS	2001-01-01 to 2017-12-27	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	500 Meters x 500 Meters	HDF-EOS
MODIS/Terra Gap-Filled, Smoothed NDVI 8-Day L4 250m SIN Grid	6	Terra	MODIS	2001-01-01 to 2017-12-27	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	500 Meters x 500 Meters	HDF-EOS
MODIS/Terra Gap-Filled, Smoothed NDVI 8-Day L4 500m SIN Grid	6	Terra	MODIS	2001-01-01 to 2017-12-27	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	500 Meters x 500 Meters	HDF-EOS
MODIS/Terra NDVI Phenology annual L4 250m SIN Grid	6	Terra	MODIS	2001-01-01 to 2017-01-01	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	500 Meters x 500 Meters	HDF-EOS
MODIS/Terra NDVI Phenology annual L4 500m SIN Grid	6	Terra	MODIS	2001-01-01 to 2017-01-01	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	500 Meters x 500 Meters	HDF-EOS
MODIS/Terra Vegetation Continuous Fields Yearly L3 Global 250m SIN Grid V006	006	Terra	MODIS	2000-03-05 to 2021-03-06	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	250 Meters x 250 Meters	HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Terra Vegetation Continuous Fields Yearly L3 Global 250m SIN Grid V061	061	Terra	MODIS	2000-03-05 to Present	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	250 Meters x 250 Meters	HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Terra+Aqua Downward Shortwave Radiation Daily/3-Hour L3 Global 0.05Deg CMG V061	061	Terra, Aqua	MODIS	2000-02-24 to 2024-06-01	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	5600 Meters x 5600 Meters	HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Terra+Aqua Downward Shortwave Radiation Daily/3-Hour L3 Global 0.05Deg CMG V062	062	Terra, Aqua	MODIS	2000-02-24 to Present	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	5600 Meters x 5600 Meters	HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Terra+Aqua Land Cover Type Yearly L3 Global 0.05Deg CMG V006	006	Terra, Aqua	MODIS	2001-01-01 to 2020-12-31	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	5600 Meters x 5600 Meters	HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Terra+Aqua Land Cover Type Yearly L3 Global 0.05Deg CMG V061	061	Terra, Aqua	MODIS	2001-01-01 to Present	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	5600 Meters x 5600 Meters	HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Terra+Aqua Land Cover Type Yearly L3 Global 500m SIN Grid V006	006	Terra, Aqua	MODIS	2001-01-01 to 2020-12-31	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	500 Meters x 500 Meters	HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Terra+Aqua Land Cover Type Yearly L3 Global 500m SIN Grid V061	061	Terra, Aqua	MODIS	2001-01-01 to Present	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	500 Meters x 500 Meters	HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Terra+Aqua Photosynthetically Active Radiation Daily/3-Hour L3 Global 0.05Deg CMG V061	061	Terra, Aqua	MODIS	2000-02-24 to 2024-06-01	N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180	5600 Meters x 5600 Meters	HDF-EOS2

Featured Land Use/Land Cover Observation Method: Sentinel-1

Sentinel-1 is a European Space Agency (ESA) satellites designed to acquire Earth-observation measurements and carries a C-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) to provide all-weather, day-and-night imagery of Earth's surface. The platform was launched on April 3, 2014, and images Earth every six days. Sentinel-1 SAR data can reveal the surface roughness of the land, oil and vegetation moisture content, and vegetation density. The dadar data can also be used to determine water surface conditions such as waviness and identify water inundation into inland areas and beneath forest canopies.

Learn More About Sentinel-1

Earthdata graphic identifier on top of image of Earth

Sentinel-1 Images Reveal Changes in the Earth’s Surface Over One Year

NASA's ASF DAAC released the Global Seasonal Sentinel-1 Interferometric Coherence and Backscatter Dataset.

HLS data near Columbus, Nebraska from 2022

HLS: Two Together Better than Two Apart

The purpose of the Harmonized Landsat Sentinel-2 (HLS) project led by IMPACT, is to combine two or more data streams into a single data set and increase their value.

Automatically Generate a Radiometrically Terrain-Corrected Sentinel-1 Image Using Cloud Computing

Learn how to use the CloudFormation Template to automate the processing of Sentinel-1 radiometrically terrain-corrected (RTC) products.

The rectangular image is a map of the St. Simons Island area of coastal Georgia. Land is colored white, roadways are black, inundated vegetation area are green, and water is colored blue. The Atlantic Ocean is in the lower-right of the image and its blue shaded area extends into waterways along the coast.

New Product Provides Detailed Maps of Water In and Around Landmasses

Sentinel-1 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data are used to create maps of surface water extent for research, planning, and disaster response.

Land Use/Land Cover Data Tools

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