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VIIRS, a scanning radiometer, collects visible and infrared imagery and radiometric measurements of the land, atmosphere, cryosphere, and oceans. VIIRS data is used to measure cloud and aerosol properties, ocean color, sea and land surface temperature, ice motion and temperature, fires, and Earth's albedo. Climatologists use VIIRS data to improve our understanding of global climate change
VIIRS extends and improves upon a series of measurements initiated by the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) and the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS).
Like MODIS, VIIRS is a multi-disciplinary sensor providing data for the ocean, land, aerosol, and cloud research and operational users. VIIRS spectral coverage will allow for data products similar to those from SeaWiFS as well as SST, a standard MODIS product. SST is an Essential Climate Variable (ECV) and, through validation with instruments traceable to NIST standards, is a Climate Data Record. Also, as with SeaWiFS and MODIS, the VIIRS scan and orbit geometries will provide global coverage every two days.
It was always intended that the NPP VIIRS instrument would provide a bridge between EOS MODIS and the operational JPSS (formerly NPOESS) VIIRS. In that context, the land science of VIIRS will build and expand on the heritage of land science from the NOAA AVHRR and EOS MODIS.
The study of vegetation dynamics, including phenology will involve the use of products such as the Vegetation Index, Leaf Water Content and Leaf Area Index. These products are used in global dynamic vegetation, carbon and agricultural production models. The study of land cover change includes the use of Land Cover and Fire products. The former are also used as a basic stratification data layer, for example to initiate regional to global climate and integrated assessment models, and the latter are used to quantify vegetation disturbance and as inputs to model emissions from biomass burning.
VIIRS Raytheon Fact Sheet [PDF] →| VIIRS Band | Central Wavelength (μm) | Bandwidth (μm) | Wavelength Range (μm) | Band Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| M1 | 0.412 | 0.020 | 0.402 - 0.422 | Visible/Reflective |
| M2 | 0.445 | 0.018 | 0.436 - 0.454 | |
| M3 | 0.488 | 0.02 | 0.478 - 0.488 | |
| M4 | 0.555 | 0.02 | 0.545 - 0.565 | |
| M5 | 0.672 | 0.02 | 0.662 - 0.682 | |
| M6 | 0.746 | 0.015 | 0.739 - 0.754 | Near IR |
| M7 | 0.865 | 0.039 | 0.846 - 0.885 | |
| M8 | 1.240 | 0.02 | 1.23 - 1.25 | Shortwave IR |
| M9 | 1.378 | 0.015 | 1.371 - 1.386 | |
| M10 | 1.61 | 0.06 | 1.58 - 1.64 | |
| M11 | 2.25 | 0.05 | 2.23 - 2.28 | |
| M12 | 3.7 | 0.18 | 3.61 - 3.79 | Medium-wave IR |
| M13 | 4.05 | 0.155 | 3.97 - 4.13 | |
| M14 | 8.55 | 0.3 | 8.4 - 8.7 | Longwave IR |
| M15 | 10.763 | 1.0 | 10.26 - 11.26 | |
| M16 | 12.013 | 0.95 | 11.54 - 12.49 | |
| I1 | 0.64 | 0.08 | 0.6 - 0.68 | Visible/Reflective |
| I2 | 0.865 | 0.039 | 0.85 - 0.88 | Near IR |
| I3 | 1.61 | 0.06 | 1.58 - 1.64 | Shortwave IR |
