Using data collected from 62 coastal stations worldwide from the Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) from 2002-2011, accuracy assessments are made for coastal aerosol optical depth (AOD) retrieved from MODIS aboard the Aqua satellite. It is found that coastal AODs (at 550 nm) characterized respectively by the MODIS Dark Land (Land) surface algorithm, the Open Ocean (Ocean) algorithm, and AERONET ...

Human-induced global warming has significantly increased the importance ofsatellite monitoring of land surface temperature (LST) on a global scale. The MODerate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) provides a 1-km resolution LST productwith almost daily coverage of the Earth, invaluable to both local and global change studies.The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission Reflection Radiomete...

A semi empirical bio-optical model was developed for the Pakri Bay. Model input parameters i.e. particle-specific spectral absorption and scattering coefficients and slope factor of coloured dissolved organic matter were calculated from the field data. The modelled reflectance spectra correspond to typical reflectance spectra with low chlorophyll-a concentration. The model is intended for the c...

The S-NPP Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) instrument, a polar orbiting Earth remote sensing instrument built using a strong MODIS background, employs a similarly designed on-board calibrating source—a V-grooved blackbody for the Thermal Emissive Bands (TEB). The central wavelengths of most VIIRS TEBs are very close to those of MODIS with the exception of the 10.7 μm channel. T...

Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) is the keystone instrument for NASA’s EOS Terra and Aqua missions, designed to extend and improve heritage sensor measurements and data records of the land, oceans and atmosphere. The reflective solar bands (RSB) of MODIS covering wavelengths from 0.41 μm to 2.2 μm, are calibrated on-orbit using a solar diffuser (SD), with its on-orbit bi-di...

In this study, the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) was spectrally cross-calibrated with the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) EVI using a year-long, global VIIRS-MODIS dataset at the climate modeling grid (CMG) resolution of 0.05 ̋-by-0.05 ̋. Our cross-calibration approach was to utilize a MODIS-compatible VIIRS EVI equation de...

Total shortwave albedo is one key variable controlling the radiation energy budget of the land surface. Thus, the monitoring of its spatial and temporal variations is one important issue e.g. for the application of climate models. Routine albedo products are available from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), e.g. MODIS MCD43A3 as 16-day 500m combined product generated fro...

39 40 Land skin temperature (Ts) is an important parameter in the energy exchange 41 between the land surface and atmosphere. Here hourly Ts from the Community Land 42 Model Version 4.0, MODIS satellite observations, and in-situ observations in 2003 43 were compared. Compared with the in-situ observations over four semi-arid stations, 44 both MODIS and modeled Ts show negative biases, but MODIS...

Estimation of actual evapotranspiration (ET) for the Middle Rio Grande valley in central New Mexico via the METRIC surface energy balance model using MODIS and Landsat imagery is described. MODIS images are a useful resource for estimating ET at large scales when high spatial resolution is not required. One advantage of MODIS satellites is that images having a view angle < ~15° are potentially ...