DAAC Data Sets
The Distributed Active Archive Center (DAAC) at NSIDC includes over 370 public, free data sets. Data sets here are organized into collections with a common platform and sensor or a common parameter, like sea ice.
Data Sets |
Spatial Coverage |
Temporal Coverage |
Parameters |
|---|---|---|---|
AMSR - Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer |
global |
28 January 2003 through 24 October 2003 |
sensor counts, brightness temperature |
AMSR-E - Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer - Earth Observing System |
varies by data set |
18 June 2002 to 04 October 2011 |
precipitation, ocean temperature, sea ice, snow/ice, soils, atmosphere |
AMSR-E Validation Data |
varies by data set |
2000 to 2005 |
cryosphere, rainfall, soil moisture |
AVHRR - Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer |
global |
1981-2005 |
albedo and surface temperature measurements |
| CLPX - Cold Land Processes Field Experiment |
Colorado, small regional study areas |
2002 February to March, & 2003 February to March |
snow/ice, brightness temperature, topography |
DEMs - Digital Elevation Models |
Alaska, Antarctica, Greenland, & global |
varies by data set |
topography, radar, glaciers/ice sheets |
EASE-Grid - Equal-Area Scalable Earth Grid |
Northern and Southern Hemispheres, and global |
1933 to present |
brightness temperature, sea ice, permafrost, ice/snow, atmosphere |
IceBridge |
Alaska, Antarctica, Greenland |
2009 to present for IceBridge Mission -- earlier missions back to 1993 also available |
topography, ice/snow, sea ice |
ICESat/GLAS - ICESat / Geoscience Laser Altimeter System |
global |
2003 to 2009 |
glaciers/ice sheets, sea ice, atmosphere, topography, vegetation |
MEaSUREs - Making Earth Science Data Records for Use in Research Environments |
Greenland, Antarctica, and global |
2000 to 2010 |
ice/snow |
MODIS - Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer |
global |
2000 to present |
ice/snow, sea ice |
PARCA - Program for Arctic Regional Climate Assessment |
Greenland |
1993 to present |
snow, ice, atmosphere |
Polar Stereo |
both poles |
1972 to present |
brightness temperature, sea ice, ice/snow |
RADARSAT |
Antarctica | 1940 to 2002 (varies by data set) | topography, radar, glaciers/ice sheets |
Scatterometry Data |
global |
1978 to present |
ocean winds, sea ice, radar, ice/snow |
Sea Ice Products |
varies by data set |
1966 to present |
ice/snow, sea ice |
TOVS - Television Infrared Observation Satellite (TIROS) Operational Vertical Sounder |
Northern and Southern Hemisphere |
1979 January through 2005 December |
atmosphere, clouds, precipitation, land temperature |
Daily Level-1A and Level-2A data from the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer (AMSR) instrument that was flown on the Advanced Earth Observation Satellite-II (ADEOS-II) satellite.
Daily, weekly, and monthly Level-1A, Level-2A, Level-2B, and Level-3 data sets from the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer - Earth Observing System (AMSR-E) sensor on NASA's Aqua satellite.
A validation effort to address data quality through several comprehensive calibration and validation programs that characterize and document the accuracy and precision of AMSR-E observations and their derived products. 
As part of the NOAA/NASA Polar Pathfinder program, AVHRR EASE-Grid products are designed to provide scientists with a time series of global-scale remote sensing data for the period prior to the Earth Observing System (EOS) satellite launches. 
The Cold Land Processes Field Experiment (CLPX) focused on developing models and measurements to extend local understanding of water fluxes, storage, and transformations to regional and global scales.
Surface elevation maps of Greenland and Antarctica created from ice sheet elevation data. These maps contribute to the study of glaciers, ice sheets, ice streams, and ice shelves.
Data for products derived from NASA's Operation IceBridge aircraft missions, as well as tools and services extending the uses of IceBridge data.
NSIDC archives and distributes 15 Level-1 and Level-2 data from the Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) instrument aboard the NASA Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation (ICESat) satellite, launched on 12 January 2003.
MEaSUREs is a program funded by NASA to support individual scientists and groups in data product generation, using proven algorithms and input data sets.
Beginning in 1993, approximately 25 investigations used in situ measurements as well as satellite and aircraft remote sensing to measure and understand the mass balance of the Greenland Ice Sheet.
NSIDC provides a large number of data sets in the polar stereographic projection, including brightness temperature and sea ice products.
The first high-resolution mapping of the entire continent of Antarctica. Mosaics provide a detailed look at Antarctica's ice sheet morphology, rock outcrops, research infrastructure, coastline, and other features.
The NASA-funded Scatterometer Climate Record Pathfinder (SCP) has generated a comprehensive suite of processed scatterometer imagery to support climate studies.
NSIDC offers a wide variety of sea ice products derived from passive microwave and visible/infrared sensors, and other sources. This data collection offers one place to find all the sea ice data available from NSIDC. 
NSIDC archives and distributes daily and monthly 100 km resolution data files in Hierarchical Data Format (HDF) from the Television Infrared Observation Satellite (TIROS) Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) instrument.
