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Topography Data Access and Tools
NASA data detail topography across the land surface, ocean, cryosphere, terrestrial hydrosphere and within the context of climate change. Our datasets and tools help researchers translate these interconnected data points into actionable knowledge.
Topography Datasets
| Dataset Sort descending | Version | Platform | Instrument | Temporal Extent | Spatial Extent | Spatial Resolution | Data Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SMAP L4 Global 9 km EASE-Grid Surface and Root Zone Soil Moisture Land Model Constants V008 | 008 | GEOS-5, SMAP | NOT APPLICABLE, SMAP L-BAND RADIOMETER | 2015-03-31 to Present |
N: 85.044 S: -85.044 E: 180 W: -180 |
9 Kilometers x 9 Kilometers | HDF5 |
| SMAPVEX08 Surface Roughness Data V001 | 1 | FIELD SURVEYS | CAMERAS | 2008-09-29 to 2008-10-13 |
N: 39.1 S: 38.8 E: -75.6 W: -76.3 |
1 Meters x 1 Meters | ASCII |
| SMAPVEX12 Surface Roughness Data for Agricultural Area V001 | 1 | GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS | CAMERAS | 2012-06-07 to 2012-07-19 |
N: 49.96 S: 49.44 E: -97.85 W: -98.51 |
1 Meters x 1 Meters | ASCII, CSV |
| SMAPVEX12 Surface Roughness Data for Forest Area V001 | 1 | GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS | CAMERAS | 2012-06-07 to 2012-07-19 |
N: 49.96 S: 49.44 E: -97.85 W: -98.51 |
Excel, ASCII | |
| SMAPVEX16 Manitoba Surface Roughness Data V001 | 1 | GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS | CAMERAS | 2016-06-10 to 2016-06-15 |
N: 49.761171 S: 49.38533 E: -97.756264 W: -98.098417 |
CSV, KMZ | |
| SMAPVEX19-22 Massachusetts Lidar Derived Digital Elevation Model V001 | 1 | CESSNA T206H | Leica CityMapper-2 | 2022-04-02 to 2022-08-09 |
N: 42.72 S: 42.32 E: -71.91 W: -72.33 |
GeoTIFF | |
| SMAPVEX19-22 Massachusetts Lidar Derived Digital Surface Model V001 | 1 | CESSNA T206H | Leica CityMapper-2 | 2022-08-03 to 2022-08-05 |
N: 42.72 S: 42.32 E: -71.91 W: -72.33 |
GeoTIFF | |
| SMAPVEX19-22 Millbrook Lidar Derived Digital Elevation Model V001 | 1 | CESSNA T206H | Leica CityMapper-2 | 2022-04-02 to 2022-08-09 |
N: 42.05 S: 41.66 E: -73.42 W: -73.81 |
GeoTIFF | |
| SMAPVEX19-22 Millbrook Lidar Derived Digital Surface Model V001 | 1 | CESSNA T206H | Leica CityMapper-2 | 2022-08-02 to 2022-08-09 |
N: 42.05 S: 41.66 E: -73.42 W: -73.81 |
GeoTIFF | |
| SnowEx Colorado 3M Snow Depth Time Series and DEMs from High-Resolution Satellite Image Pairs V001 | 1 | AIRCRAFT, Pleiades-1A, Pleiades-1B, WORLDVIEW-2, WORLDVIEW-3 | LIDAR, CAMERA | 2022-03-16 to 2022-05-11 |
N: 39.216156 S: 38.785954 E: -107.747336 W: -108.382269 N: 37.350142 S: 36.946006 E: -106.336567 W: -106.869547 |
1 Meters x 1 Meters 3 Meters x 3 Meters |
GeoTIFF |
| SnowEx Mores Creek Summit (MCS) Airborne LiDAR Survey V001 | 1 | HELICOPTER | LIDAR | 2021-03-10 to 2025-05-01 |
N: 43.974802141694 S: 43.913645323478 E: -115.64243768567 W: -115.73049873632 |
GeoTIFF | |
| SnowEx20 Grand Mesa IOP QSI Lidar Snow Depth Data V001 | 1 | AIRCRAFT | LIDAR | 2020-02-01 to 2020-02-02 |
N: 39.039456 S: 39.009209 E: -108.157747 W: -108.21092 |
1 Meters x 1 Meters | GeoTIFF |
| SnowEx20-21 QSI Lidar DEM 0.5m UTM Grid V001 | 1 | King Air | LIDAR | 2021-09-16 to 2021-09-21 |
N: 44.3658 S: 43.0343 E: -114.8547 W: -117.0661 N: 40.6041 S: 40.5161 E: -111.5989 W: -111.7319 N: 40.5841 S: 38.9681 E: -105.7432 W: -108.3384 |
0.5 Meters x 0.5 Meters | TIFF |
| SnowEx20-21 QSI Lidar DEM 3m UTM Grid V001 | 1 | King Air | LIDAR | 2021-09-16 to 2021-09-21 |
N: 44.3658 S: 43.0343 E: -114.8547 W: -117.0661 N: 40.6041 S: 40.5161 E: -111.5989 W: -111.7319 N: 40.5841 S: 38.9681 E: -105.7432 W: -108.3384 |
3 Meters x 3 Meters | TIFF |
| SnowEx20-21 QSI Lidar Snow Depth 3m UTM Grid V001 | 1 | King Air | LIDAR | 2021-03-15 to 2021-03-20 |
N: 44.3658 S: 43.0343 E: -114.8547 W: -117.0661 N: 40.6041 S: 40.5161 E: -111.5989 W: -111.7319 N: 40.5841 S: 38.9681 E: -105.7432 W: -108.3384 |
3 Meters x 3 Meters | TIFF |
| SnowEx21 Prairie Station Digital Surface Models from UAV-LiDAR V001 | 1 | UAV | CAMERA, LIDAR | 2021-01-15 to 2021-03-04 |
N: 47.0655368 S: 47.0562694 E: -109.945955 W: -109.9595558 |
GeoTIFF | |
| SnowEx23 Airborne Lidar-Derived 0.5M Snow Depth and Canopy Height V001 | 1 | CESSNA 206 | Riegl Airborne Lidar | 2022-03-11 to 2023-10-25 |
N: 70 S: 64.5 E: -148 W: -148.5 |
0.5 Meters x 0.5 Meters | GeoTIFF |
| SnowEx23 Apr23 IOP Snow Surface Imagery V001 | 1 | GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS | CAMERAS, GPS | 2023-04-14 to 2023-04-18 |
N: 65.15746 S: 63.8619 E: -145.723 W: -147.508 |
Excel, JPEG | |
| SnowEx23 Bonanza Creek Experimental Forest Terrestrial Lidar Scans V001 | 1 | GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS | GPS RECEIVERS, LIDAR | 2023-03-08 to 2023-03-26 |
N: 64.714 S: 64.697 E: -148.278 W: -148.325 |
GeoTIFF | |
| SnowEx23 Oct22 Ground Surface Roughness Imagery V001 | 1 | GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS | CAMERAS | 2022-10-23 to 2022-10-25 |
N: 68.7 S: 68.4 E: -149.3 W: -149.5 |
JPEG | |
| SnowEx23 Oct22 Ground Surface Roughness Reconstruction V001 | 1 | GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS | CAMERAS | 2022-10-23 to 2022-10-25 |
N: 68.7 S: 68.4 E: -149.3 W: -149.5 |
LAZ | |
| SnowEx23 Oct23 Ground Surface Roughness Imagery V001 | 1 | GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS | CAMERAS | 2023-10-17 to 2023-10-28 |
N: 68.7 S: 68.5 E: -149.3 W: -149.6 N: 65.2 S: 64.8 E: -147.5 W: -147.8 |
JPEG | |
| SnowEx23 Oct23 Ground Surface Roughness Reconstruction V001 | 1 | GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS | CAMERAS | 2023-10-17 to 2023-10-28 |
N: 68.7 S: 68.5 E: -149.3 W: -149.6 N: 65.2 S: 64.8 E: -147.5 W: -147.8 |
LAZ | |
| Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) L1-L3 Ancillary Static Data V001 | 1 | NOT APPLICABLE | NOT APPLICABLE | 2015-01-14 to Present |
N: 86.4 S: -86.4 E: 180 W: -180 |
Binary, HDF5, ASCII | |
| Standing Crop & Nitrogen Content (FIFE) | 1 | FIELD INVESTIGATION | BALANCE, SOIL DEPTH PROBE, COLORIMETERS, INCLINOMETERS | 1987-05-28 to 1987-10-12 |
N: 39.1 S: 39.07 E: -96.53 W: -96.59 |
multiple |
Topography Featured Observation Method: ICESat-2
NASA's Ice, Cloud, and Land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) allows scientists to measure the elevation of ice sheets, glaciers, sea ice, and land across Earth's temperate and tropical regions, as well as take stock of the vegetation in forests worldwide. ICESat-2 carries the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System (ATLAS), which sends 10,000 pulses of laser light to the ground per second and then measures how long it takes them be reflected back by the surface to determine the area's elevation.
Learn more about ICESat-2/ATLAS near real-time data provided by NASA's Land, Atmosphere Near real-time Capability for Earth observation (LANCE).
ICESat-2 carries the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System (ATLAS), which sends pulses of laser light to the ground, collects the returning photons in a telescope, and records the photon travel time.
Learn more about ICESat-2/ATLAS near real-time data provided by NASA's Land, Atmosphere Near real-time Capability for Earth observation (LANCE).
ICESat-2 carries the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System (ATLAS), which sends pulses of laser light to the ground, collects the returning photons in a telescope, and records the photon travel time.
Data from NASA’s ICESat-2 mission provide incredibly accurate measurements of Earth elevation change—and much more.
8 MIN READ
The five new datasets are the result of a joint effort by NASA’s Satellite Needs Working Group Management Office (SNWG MO), ICESat-2 team, and Land, Atmosphere Near real-time Capability for EOS (LANCE).
3 MIN READ
This is the first in a five-part webinar series to introduce NASA's Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation-2 (ICESat-2) platform and the platform's data, tools, and applications.
This ACCESS 2015 project focused on OpenAltimetry, a cloud-ready web-based application for discovery, access, and visualization of ICESat and ICESat-2 data.
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