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.
Dataset Overviews
Sub-categories
Climate datasets
![Snow Cover Extent (Northern Hemisphere) Climate Data Record, by Rutgers Snow Cover Extent (Northern Hemisphere) Climate Data Record, by Rutgers](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/2022-03/Rutgers-snow-cover-extent.png?itok=TdcgapuL)
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 with modern…
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Timestep
- Monthly, Weekly
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Domain
- North America
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Collections
- Climate Data Record, Diagnostic Data Sets, NCAR-DOE-CESM, landdiagnostics
Experts contributing reviews
- Estilow, Thomas W. | Robinson, David
![The monthly averaged downscaled 1 km and 9 km SMAP SM of descending overpass (6 a.m.) from 2020 in Danube River basin. (contributed by Bin Fang and Venkat Lakshmi)](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/2023-09/figure3.png?itok=XhnNdmST)
Years of record
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This data product contains global daily 1 km resolution surface soil moisture (SM) derived from the Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) L-band radiometer observations.…
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Formats
- N/A
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Timestep
- Daily
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Domain
- Global
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Collections
- N/A
Experts contributing reviews
- Lakshmi, Venkataraman | Fang, Bin
![maps of SIF and GPP (contributed by Jingfeng Xiao and Xing Li)](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/2023-09/Figure2-snippet.png?itok=2lYDZKuG)
Years of record
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GOSIF is a global, gridded dataset of solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF). SIF, an energy flux re-emitted by plants a few nanoseconds after light absorption,…
Main variables and Earth System components
Biosphere GPP: Gross Primary Production solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) Land Gross Primary Production-
Formats
- N/A
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Timestep
- Monthly, Weekly
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Domain
- Global
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Collections
- N/A
Experts contributing reviews
- Xiao, Jingfeng | Li, Xing
![Soil Moisture Data Sets: Overview & Comparison Tables Soil Moisture Data Sets: Overview & Comparison Tables](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/2022-03/soil-moisture-data-sets.png?itok=QAAow6we)
Years of record
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Soil moisture is a state variable of the land that crosses the interfaces of several disciplines, including meteorology, hydrology, climatology and ecology. Soil moisture…
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Formats
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Timestep
- N/A
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Domain
- N/A
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Collections
- Overview / Comparison page
Experts contributing reviews
- Dirmeyer, Paul
![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](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/2022-03/teaser_images_584.png?itok=hy_VhQy5)
Years of record
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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 the three…
Main variables and Earth System components
Land Land Cover Type Land Use Conversion Vegetation CoverExperts contributing reviews
- Meiyappan, Prasanth
![Landscape surface freeze/thaw status based on passive microwave remote sensing Landscape surface freeze/thaw status based on passive microwave remote sensing](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/2022-03/teaser_images_596.png?itok=LYKfHBIx)
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 spatial…
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Timestep
- Daily
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Domain
- Global
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Collections
- Climate Data Record
Experts contributing reviews
- Kimball, John
![graph Simulation performance of 19 Earth system models (credit: Justin Makin and Corey Lesk)](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/2023-08/Picture2.png?itok=W8BaEIrF)
Years of record
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The land surface is a dynamic and complex component of the Earth system, shaping climate and biogeochemical cycles and serving as the origin of many anthropogenic impacts on…
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Formats
- N/A
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Timestep
- N/A
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Domain
- N/A
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Collections
- N/A
Experts contributing reviews
- Mankin, Justin | Lesk, Corey
![contribution from each of the different evaporation components in GLEAM for 1980-2022 (contributed by A Koppa and D Miralles)](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/2023-09/GLEAM-snippet.png?itok=a7Ge9kvt)
Years of record
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The Global Land Evaporation Amsterdam Model (GLEAM) is a satellite remote sensing-based set of algorithms dedicated to the estimation of evaporation and soil moisture at…
Main variables and Earth System components
Biosphere land evaporation Land evapotranspiration Soil Moisture-
Formats
- N/A
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Timestep
- Daily
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Domain
- Global
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Collections
- N/A
Experts contributing reviews
- Miralles, Diego | Koppa, Akash
![Global Permafrost Zonation Index Map Global Permafrost Zonation Index Map](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/2022-03/teaser_images_612.png?itok=VH-AaxYN)
Years of record
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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 everywhere,…
Experts contributing reviews
- Gruber, Stephan
![LANDSAT LANDSAT](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/2022-03/LANDSAT.klyuchevskaya_oli_2013252_swir.jpg?itok=sU-3K-yB)
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 of Earth’s…
Main variables and Earth System components
Biosphere NPP: Net Primary Production Land Land Cover Type Vegetation Cover-
Formats
- N/A
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Timestep
- Sub-daily
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Domain
- Global
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Collections
- Carbon cycle
Experts contributing reviews
- N/A
![CERES: IGBP Land Classification CERES: IGBP Land Classification](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/2022-03/teaser_images_623.png?itok=XeTiZ171)
Years of record
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The International Geosphere–Biosphere Programme (IGBP) defines ecosystems surface classifications. The CERES (Clouds and Earth's Radiant Energy System)10-minute data can be…
Experts contributing reviews
- N/A