Land

Important land variables include soil moisture, vegetation coverage, surface radiation budgets and more. Overview pages summarize and compare selected datasets of a given variable.

To find a specific dataset or variable, jump to the search box below or click your desired variable from among the blue sub-category buttons.

To see only the datasets accompanied by expert commentaries, select the "Datasets with guidance" button when using the search box.

Climate datasets

Has expert guidance
Historical land-cover changes and land-use conversions global data set by Meiyappan and Jain Historical land-cover changes and land-use conversions global data set by Meiyappan and Jain

  • Years of record

  • to

A set of three estimates of land-cover types and annual transformations of land use are provided on a global 0.5°x0.5° grid at annual timesteps. The longest of…

Main variables and Earth System components

Land Land Cover Type Land Use Conversion Vegetation Cover

    • Timestep

    • Annual

    • Collections

    • N/A
Carbon Emissions from Historical Land-Use and Land-Use Change Carbon Emissions from Historical Land-Use and Land-Use Change

  • Years of record

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Annual net land-atmosphere carbon flux and net flux of carbon to the atmosphere due to land-use and land-use change (LULUC) are estimated using an integrated…

Main variables and Earth System components

Biosphere CO2 Land CO2 Land-Atmosphere flux Land Cover Type Land Use Conversion

    • Timestep

    • Annual

    • Collections

    • N/A
Soil Moisture Data Sets: Overview & Comparison Tables Soil Moisture Data Sets: Overview & Comparison Tables

  • Years of record

  • N/A

Soil moisture is a state variable of the land that crosses the interfaces of several disciplines, including meteorology, hydrology, climatology and ecology. Soil…

Main variables and Earth System components

Land Soil Moisture

    • Formats

    • N/A

    • Timestep

    • N/A

    • Domain

    • N/A

    • Collections

    • N/A
Landscape surface freeze/thaw status based on passive microwave remote sensing Landscape surface freeze/thaw status based on passive microwave remote sensing

  • Years of record

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A global data set of the frozen state of the land surface (free-thaw (FT) status) has been developed spanning 1979-present at a daily timestep and 25 x 25 km…

Main variables and Earth System components

Land Freeze/Thaw
Snow Cover Extent (Northern Hemisphere) Climate Data Record, by Rutgers Snow Cover Extent (Northern Hemisphere) Climate Data Record, by Rutgers

  • Years of record

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The Snow Cover Extent Climate Data Record extends from the late 1960s to present. Historical analyses based on visual inspection have been digitized and combined…

Main variables and Earth System components

Cryosphere Snow Cover Land
LANDSAT LANDSAT

  • Years of record

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"The Landsat Program provides the longest continuous space-based record of Earth’s land in existence. Since 1972, Landsat satellites have collected measurements…

Main variables and Earth System components

Biosphere NPP: Net Primary Production Land Land Cover Type Vegetation Cover

  • Experts contributing reviews

  • N/A
CERES: IGBP Land Classification CERES: IGBP Land Classification

  • Years of record

  • N/A

The International Geosphere–Biosphere Programme (IGBP) defines ecosystems surface classifications. The CERES (Clouds and Earth's Radiant Energy System)10-minute…

Main variables and Earth System components

Land Land Cover Type Vegetation Cover

  • Experts contributing reviews

  • N/A
U.S. Climate Extremes Index (CEI) U.S. Climate Extremes Index (CEI)

  • Years of record

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The U.S. Climate Extremes Index (CEI) was first presented in 1995 as a framework for quantifying observed changes in climate within the contiguous United States…

Main variables and Earth System components

Atmosphere Air Temperature Maximum Air Temperature Minimum Air Temperature Precipitation Wind Land Drought
Global Permafrost Zonation Index Map Global Permafrost Zonation Index Map

  • Years of record

  • N/A

This data set contains a global (excluding Antarctica) 1 km map of permafrost zonation. It is an estimate of to what degree permafrost exists in a region nearly…

Main variables and Earth System components

Cryosphere Permafrost Land
Drought atlases from tree rings Drought atlases from tree rings

  • Years of record

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Tree-ring drought atlases provide a paleoclimate analog to modern drought indices, most commonly the Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI).  Produced on a regular…

Main variables and Earth System components

Land Drought
GHCNDEX: Gridded Temperature and Precipitation Climate Extremes Indices (CLIMDEX data) GHCNDEX: Gridded Temperature and Precipitation Climate Extremes Indices (CLIMDEX data)

  • Years of record

  • to

GHCNDEX provides gridded, station-based indices of temperature- and precipitation- related climate extremes. It is intended for climate change detection and…

Main variables and Earth System components

Atmosphere Maximum Air Temperature Minimum Air Temperature Land Freeze/Thaw

  • Experts contributing reviews

  • N/A
HadEX2: Gridded Temperature and Precipitation Climate Extremes Indices (CLIMDEX data) HadEX2: Gridded Temperature and Precipitation Climate Extremes Indices (CLIMDEX data)

  • Years of record

  • to

HadEX2 provides gridded, station-based indices of temperature- and precipitation- related climate extremes. It is intended for climate change detection and…

Main variables and Earth System components

Atmosphere Maximum Air Temperature Minimum Air Temperature Land Freeze/Thaw

  • Experts contributing reviews

  • N/A