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Downloading Data from Earthdata Cloud to Your Local Computer Using the Command Line

This article shows how to download NSIDC DAAC data from NASA Earthdata Cloud to your computer using three tools: wget and curl—popular command-line utilities for downloading files—and Data Downloader, a Python-based command-line tool developed by the Physical Oceanography Distributed Active Archive Center (PO.DAAC).

Prerequisites

wget

Download a single file

To download a file using wget, use this basic syntax:

wget [URL]

Here's an example command to download one ATLAS/ICESat-2 L2A Global Geolocated Photon (ATL03, Version 6) file on Linux or macOS:

wget https://data.nsidc.earthdatacloud.nasa.gov/nsidc-cumulus-prod-protected/ATLAS/ATL03/006/2025/03/02/ATL03_20250302235544_11742607_006_01.h5

This command saves the file ATL03_20250302235544_11742607_006_01.h5 to your current working directory.

Download multiple files

Using a Text File with HTTPS Links

1.    Put the text file (named URLs.txt in this example) containing the HTTPS links for your desired data files into the directory where you want to download the files.

2.   Use the -i flag (input file) to tell wget to read URLs from a file:

wget -i URLs.txt

Here are some useful wget flags:

  • -P <directory>: Save files to a specific folder. The example below creates a downloads folder in your working directory and saves files there:

    wget -i URLs.txt -P downloads/

  • -nc: Skip downloading files that already exist in your given directory (no clobber):

    wget -i URLs.txt -P downloads/ -nc

For a complete guide to all available Wget options, see the GNU Wget 1.25 Manual.

Using the CMR Virtual Directory

You can use wget to download files for specific dates from a data collection by using a URL from the CMR Virtual Directory.

For example, this CMR Virtual Directory path lists all ATL03 Version 6 files for August 12, 2024: https://cmr.earthdata.nasa.gov/virtual-directory/collections/C2596864127-NSIDC_CPRD/temporal/2024/08/12. You can download these files using wget using the following bash script:

#!/bin/bash

# ===== USER CONFIGURATION =====
# Set user configurable variables below - modify these values according to your download needs
COLLECTION=C2596864127-NSIDC_CPRD
yyyy=2024
mm=08
dd=12

# ===== CORE SCRIPT - DO NOT MODIFY =====
WGET_OPTS="-r --no-parent --span-hosts -D cmr.earthdata.nasa.gov,data.nsidc.earthdatacloud.nasa.gov -nd -c"
wget ${WGET_OPTS} https://cmr.earthdata.nasa.gov/virtual-directory/collections/${COLLECTION}/temporal/${yyyy}/${mm}/${dd}

This script can be used to download any NSIDC DAAC data collection available in Earthdata Cloud. To find available collections, visit https://cmr.earthdata.nasa.gov/search/site/collections/directory/NSIDC_CPRD/gov.nasa.eosdis. The collections are listed alphabetically. Navigate to your desired dataset and click the "Directory" link in the last column to access the virtual directory. From there, drill down to your target date and copy the path.

  • From this path, copy the Earthdata Collection concept ID (located between collections/ and /temporal in the URL, formatted as C####-NSIDC_CPRD). Assign this unique dataset identifier to the COLLECTION variable in the Bash script.
  • Update the date variables (yyyy, mm, and dd) in the script to specify your desired year, month, and day.

The WGET_OPTS line sets options that tell wget to download files recursively (-r) while saving them to the current directory without creating subdirectories (-nd). It ensures downloads work across the correct domains (--span-hosts -D) and can resume if interrupted (-c). The final line builds the complete URL using your specified variables and applies the WGET_OPTS settings to control the download process.

To use this script,

1.   Open a terminal window and create the script file. For this example, we'll create myscript.sh using the nano text editor.

nano myscript.sh

Copy and paste the script above, modifying the collection concept ID and date variables to match your target day, month, or year.

Save and exit the file (in nano, press Ctrl+O, then Enter, then Ctrl+X).

2.   Make the script executable by setting the execution permissions:

chmod +x myscript.sh

3.   Run the script.

./myscript.sh

Note: The ./ prefix tells the shell to execute the script from the current working directory.

curl

Download a single file

To use curl to download a single NSIDC DAAC file, use this basic syntax:

curl -b ~/.urs_cookies -c ~/.urs_cookies -L -n -O [URL]

For example, here's the code for downloading a single file of ATLAS/ICESat-2 L2A Global Geolocated Photon Data, Version 6 (ATL03):

curl -b ~/.urs_cookies -c ~/.urs_cookies -L -n -O https://data.nsidc.earthdatacloud.nasa.gov/nsidc-cumulus-prod-protected/ATLAS/ATL03/005/2022/06/06/ATL03_20220606155953_11541505_005_02.h5

The command uses these important flags:

  • -O saves the file with its original name (ATL03_20220606155953_11541505_005_02.h5)
  • -n uses your stored EDL credentials from the .netrc file
  • -b and -c maintain session cookies
  • -L follows redirect chains

Downloading multiple files

Using a Text File with HTTPS Links

1.    Put the text file (named URLs.txt in this example) containing the HTTPS links for your desired data files into the directory where you want to download the files.

2.   Use xargs and curl together to download the files in batch:

xargs -n 1 curl -O -b ~/.urs_cookies -c ~/.urs_cookies -L -n < URLs.txt

The command processes URLs.txt line by line, with xargs -n 1 passing each URL to a separate curl command. The curl flags work as described in the single-file download section above.

PO.DAAC Data Downloader

PO.DAAC offers two Python-based command-line tools: a data subscriber and a data downloader. Use the Downloader for occasional or on-demand downloads, and the Subscriber for continuous updates from the archive.

To use either tool with NSIDC DAAC cloud data, specify the provider option (-p or --provider) as NSIDC_CPRD.

Here's an example that downloads ATLAS/ICESat-2 L3A Land and Vegetation Height, Version 6 (ATL08) files within a specific time range (June 7-8, 2022) and region (bounding box: 12.5°W, 51.05°S, 13.85°E, 51.9°N):

podaac-data-downloader -c ATL08 -d ./data_atl08 -p NSIDC_CPRD -b="12.5,51.05,13.85,51.9" -sd=2022-06-07T00:00:00Z -ed=2022-06-08T23:59:00Z

For instructions on using the data subscriber, see https://nsidc.org/data/user-resources/help-center/how-create-data-subscriptions.

Final Thoughts

Here's a simple breakdown of each tool for downloading NSIDC DAAC data from Earthdata Cloud:

  • wget: Excellent for downloading single or multiple files. It handles interrupted downloads automatically and includes options for retrieving files from specific dates.
  • curl: Already installed on most computers and easy to use for downloading single files. Works well with other commands to download multiple files.
  • PO.DAAC Data Downloader: Best when you need to get data from specific times and areas of interest, or want to set up automatic downloads.

Pick the tool that works best for you. If you just need to download a few files now and then, curl or wget are good choices. If you need to download data from specific areas or set up automatic downloads, use the PO.DAAC Data Downloader.

If you have questions about downloading NSIDC DAAC data using these tools, please email NSIDC User Services at nsidc@nsidc.org.

Last Updated July 2025

Related Data Collections

NASA Earthdata Cloud