SMAP Level 4 soil moisture products will version up in November 2021. Should you have questions, please contact user services at nsidc@nsidc.org. Thank you for your patience while we update the data.

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Data Set ID:
SPL4SMAU

SMAP L4 Global 3-hourly 9 km EASE-Grid Surface and Root Zone Soil Moisture Analysis Update, Version 5

SMAP Level-4 (L4) surface and root zone soil moisture data are provided in three products:
* SMAP L4 Global 3-hourly 9 km EASE-Grid Surface and Root Zone Soil Moisture Geophysical Data (SPL4SMGP, DOI: 10.5067/9LNYIYOBNBR5)
* SMAP L4 Global 3-hourly 9 km EASE-Grid Surface and Root Zone Soil Moisture Analysis Update (SPL4SMAU, DOI: 10.5067/0D8JT6S27BS9)
* SMAP L4 Global 9 km EASE-Grid Surface and Root Zone Soil Moisture Land Model Constants (SPL4SMLM, DOI: 10.5067/5C36BVQZW28K).
For each product, SMAP L-band brightness temperature data from descending and ascending half-orbit satellite passes (approximately 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. local solar time, respectively) are assimilated into a land surface model that is gridded using an Earth-fixed, global cylindrical 9 km Equal-Area Scalable Earth Grid, Version 2.0 (EASE-Grid 2.0) projection.

This is the most recent version of these data.

Version Summary:

Changes to this version include:
- The Level-4 soil moisture algorithm was re-calibrated to work with the substantially changed calibration of the assimilated Level-1C brightness temperatures.
- The brightness temperature scaling parameters in the updated Level-4 soil moisture algorithm are based on five years of SMAP observations (April 2015 – March 2020).
- The land surface modeling system underpinning the updated Level-4 soil moisture algorithm was revised in the following ways:
* Improved surface aerodynamic roughness length (z0) formulation, including use of a stem area index.
* Corrected an error in the fitting procedure used for one of the topography-related functions in the Catchment model, which potentially affected the simulation of soil moisture in about 2% of all land surface elements (De Lannoy et al. 2014).
* Updated calibration of the microwave radiative transfer model parameters.
- The updated Level-4 soil moisture algorithm includes major software upgrades, including full compliance with the Earth System Modeling Framework, a modular and extensible software design approach, for improved support of future science development.
- Minor bug fixes.

For the full major and minor version history, go to https://nsidc.org/data/smap/data_versions.

COMPREHENSIVE Level of Service

Data: Data integrity and usability verified; data customization services available for select data

Documentation: Key metadata and comprehensive user guide available

User Support: Assistance with data access and usage; guidance on use of data in tools and data customization services

See All Level of Service Details

Parameter(s):
  • SOILS > SOIL MOISTURE/WATER CONTENT > ROOT ZONE SOIL MOISTURE
  • SOILS > SOIL MOISTURE/WATER CONTENT > SURFACE SOIL MOISTURE
Data Format(s):
  • HDF5
Spatial Coverage:
N: 85.044, 
S: -85.044, 
E: 180, 
W: -180
Platform(s):GEOS-5, SMAP
Spatial Resolution:
  • 9 km x 9 km
Sensor(s):NOT APPLICABLE, SMAP L-BAND RADIOMETER
Temporal Coverage:
  • 31 March 2015
Version(s):V5
Temporal Resolution3 hourMetadata XML:View Metadata Record
Data Contributor(s):Reichle, R., G. De Lannoy, R. D. Koster, W. T. Crow, J. S. Kimball, and Q. Liu.

Geographic Coverage
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Download Via HTTPS: An Earthdata Login account is required to access these data.

Once you have logged in, you will be able to click and download files via a Web browser. There are also options for downloading via a command line or client. For more detailed instructions, please see Options Available for Bulk Downloading Data from HTTPS with Earthdata Login.

Earthdata Search: This application allows you to search, visualize, and access data across thousands of Earth science data sets. Additional customization services are available for select data sets, including subsetting, reformatting, and reprojection.

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Subscription Service: Subscribe to have new data automatically delivered to you as they become available at NSIDC. Subscriptions apply only to future data as they are delivered to NSIDC; they cannot be used to receive data already in NSIDC's archive.

As a condition of using these data, you must cite the use of this data set using the following citation. For more information, see our Use and Copyright Web page.

Reichle, R., G. De Lannoy, R. D. Koster, W. T. Crow, J. S. Kimball, and Q. Liu. 2020. SMAP L4 Global 3-hourly 9 km EASE-Grid Surface and Root Zone Soil Moisture Analysis Update, Version 5. [Indicate subset used]. Boulder, Colorado USA. NASA National Snow and Ice Data Center Distributed Active Archive Center. doi: https://doi.org/10.5067/0D8JT6S27BS9. [Date Accessed].

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How To

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FAQ

Why does the root zone soil moisture in the SMAP Level-4 soil moisture products vary in such close unison with the surface soil moisture?
The surface and root zone soil moisture estimates in the SMAP Level-4 soil moisture products are the outputs of a land surface model into which SMAP observations of brightness temperature have been assimilated. The coupling between the surface layer and the root zone layer is known to be very... read more
What are the latencies for SMAP radiometer data sets?
The following table describes both the required and actual latencies for the different SMAP radiometer data sets. Latency is defined as the time (# days, hh:mm:ss) from data acquisition to product generation. Short name Title Latency Required Actual (mean1) SPL1AP SMAP L1A... read more
Why do the soil moisture values in the SMAP Level-4 data vary from what I expect in a particular region?
There are a few reasons that the soil moisture data values in SMAP Level-4 data products may vary from what you expect in a particular region. The first step a data user should take in investigating apparently anomalous values is to look at the rich quality information and other data flags... read more
What data subsetting, reformatting, and reprojection services are available for SMAP data?
The following table describes the data subsetting, reformatting, and reprojection services that are currently available for SMAP data via the NASA Earthdata Search, a Data Subscription, and Programmatic Access. Short name Title Subsetting Reformatting... read more
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NSIDC User Services
Phone: 1 303 492-6199
Email: nsidc@nsidc.org