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Data Set ID:
NSIDC-0046

Northern Hemisphere EASE-Grid 2.0 Weekly Snow Cover and Sea Ice Extent, Version 4

The main parameters for this data set are snow cover and sea ice extent; both parameters are derived from SMMR and DMSP-F8, -F11, -F13, and -F17 SSM/I and SSMIS brightness temperature data. These data are provided on the Northern Hemisphere EASE-Grid 2.0 projection and at a grid cell size of 25 x 25 km. This product is designed to provide a consistent weekly time series of snow cover starting in October 1966 and sea ice starting in October 1978.

This is the most recent version of these data.

Version Summary:
  • The projection changed to EASE-Grid 2.0, 720 x 720, at 25.000000 km
  • Sensor change over dates:
    • SMMR to SSM/I: 1987-07-03
    • SSM/I F08 to F11: 1991-12-09
    • SSM/I F11 to F13: 1995-05-08
    • SSM/I F13 to SSMIS F17: 2008-01-01
  • EASE-Grid Land Mask Source: Same as Version 3.1, regridded to EASE-Grid 2.0 (Brodzik et al. 2012).
  • Sea Ice data set used: 1978-10-23 to present: Sea Ice Concentrations from Nimbus-7 SMMR and DMSP SSM/I-SSMIS Passive Microwave Data.

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):
  • SEA ICE
  • SNOW/ICE > SNOW COVER
Data Format(s):
  • Binary
Spatial Coverage:
N: 90, 
S: 0, 
E: 180, 
W: -180
Platform(s):DMSP, DMSP 5D-2/F11, DMSP 5D-2/F13, DMSP 5D-2/F8, DMSP 5D-3/F17, GOES, GOES-7, Nimbus-7
Spatial Resolution:
  • 25 km x 25 km
Sensor(s):SMMR, SSM/I, SSMIS, VAS
Temporal Coverage:
  • 3 October 1966 to 31 December 2020
  • 23 October 1978 to 31 December 2020
Version(s):V4
Temporal Resolution7 dayMetadata XML:View Metadata Record
Data Contributor(s):Brodzik, M. J. and R. Armstrong.

Geographic Coverage

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.

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.

Brodzik, M. J. and R. Armstrong. 2013. Northern Hemisphere EASE-Grid 2.0 Weekly Snow Cover and Sea Ice Extent, Version 4. [Indicate subset used]. Boulder, Colorado USA. NASA National Snow and Ice Data Center Distributed Active Archive Center. doi: https://doi.org/10.5067/P7O0HGJLYUQU. [Date Accessed].

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How To

How do I import EASE-Grid 2.0 snow cover and sea ice data into ArcGIS?
This document describes how to import  EASE-Grid 2.0 data files into ArcGIS, using Northern Hemisphere EASE-Grid 2.0 Weekly Snow Cover and Sea Ice Extent, Version 4 data as an example. These steps were tested with ArcGIS 10 on a Windows platform.  1. Rename data file Data files from... read more
V0 Programmatic Data Access Guide
Data from the NASA National Snow and Ice Data Center Distributed Active Archive Center (NSIDC DAAC) can be accessed directly from our HTTPS file system. We provide basic command line Wget and curl instructions for HTTPS file system downloads below. For questions about programmatic access to NSIDC... read more
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Email: nsidc@nsidc.org