The NASA National Snow and Ice Data Center Distributed Active Archive Center (NSIDC DAAC) learned that the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) will continue processing and delivery of data from the Special Sensor Microwave Imager/Sounder (SSMIS) instrument through the retirement of the DMSP mission, which is expected in September 2026. For further details, see the Earthdata: Status Update on DMSP Data Products. As a result, the following NSIDC DAAC data sets will continue to update:
- Bootstrap Sea Ice Concentrations from Nimbus-7 SMMR and DMSP SSM/I (NSIDC-0079)
- DMSP SSM/I Daily Polar Gridded Brightness Temperatures (NSIDC-0001)
- Near-Real-Time DMSP SSM/I-SSMIS Daily Polar Gridded Brightness Temperatures (NSIDC-0080)
- Near-Real-Time DMSP SSMIS Daily Polar Gridded Sea Ice Concentrations (NSIDC-0081)
- Near-Real-Time SSM/I-SSMIS EASE-Grid Daily Global Ice Concentration and Snow Extent (NISE)
- Sea Ice Concentrations from Nimbus-7 SMMR and DMSP SSM/I-SSMIS Passive Microwave Data (NSIDC-0051)
The following data set will continue to provide SSMIS data, along with AMSR2 data:
- Calibrated Enhanced-Resolution Passive Microwave Daily EASE-Grid 2.0 Brightness Temperature ESDR (NSIDC-0630)
Increased gaps in the DMSP SSMIS data, which began in late spring of 2025 as the DoD deprioritized the processing of SSMIS data, will remain possible through the end of the mission. Additionally, sensor failures may occur before the end of the mission occurs. We recommend users relying on these SSMIS-based data sets begin evaluating the available AMSR2 alternatives:
- AMSR2 Daily Polar Gridded Brightness Temperatures, Version 1 (NSIDC-0802)
- AMSR2 Daily Polar Gridded Sea Ice Concentrations, Version 1 (NSIDC-0803)
- Near-Real-Time AMSR2 EASE-Grid Daily Global Ice Concentration and Snow Extent, Version 1 (NISE_A2)
Please note, Version 1 of the NSIDC-0802 and NSIDC-0803 data sets is in binary format, with Version 2 in netCDF format available in mid-August 2025.