Annual NLCD Product Suites Data Dictionary

Annual NLCD Product Identifier

• Field Definition: The unique identification of each tile.

      Tiled Annual NLCD products adhere to the following file naming convention:

        Values:

        Annual_NLCD_H{xx}V{yy}_{PRODUCT}_{YYYY}_{REGION}_C{C}V{V}.tif
        Annual_NLCD     Annual National Land Cover Database

        xx     Horizontal tile number
        yy    Vertical tile number
        

       PRODUCT   One of six land cover product:
       LndCov = Land Cover
       LndChg = Land Cover Change
       LndCnf = Land Cover Confidence
       FctImp = Fractional Impervious Surface
       ImpDsc = Impervious Descriptor
       SpcChg = Spectral Change Day of Year

       YYYY                       Map Year
       REGION                  Region of the U.S. (“CU” = CONUS, “AK” = Alaska, “HI” Hawaii)
       C                             Collection number (“1, 2, or 3”)
       V                             Version number (“0, 1, 2, or 3”)

        Example:
        Examples of this convention for U.S. ARD tile H05V02, map year 2001, the Conterminous U.S. for region (CU), and Collection 1.0, would be
        represented as follows:

     Annual_NLCD_ H05V02_LndCov_2001_CU_C1V0.tif 
     Annual_NLCD_ H05V02_LndChg_2001_CU_C1V0.tif
     Annual_NLCD_ H05V02_LndCnf_2001_CU_C1V0.tif
     Annual_NLCD_ H05V02_FctImp_2001_CU_C1V0.tif
     Annual_NLCD_ H05V02_ImpDsc_2001_CU_C1V0.tif
     Annual_NLCD_ H05V02_SpcChg_2001_CU_C1V0.tif

The external metadata files associated with each product follow the exact same structure:

 

Annual NLCD Version

• Field Definition:  A version represents an annual update to the collections based Annual NLCD. For example, in the Collection 1 release, Version 0 represents the original debut, including consistently generated products for 1985 through 2023 products, while Version 1 will represent the addition of 2024 for all products, along with any minor bug fixes or improvements. Only minor algorithm or methods changes are permitted within a collection to keep temporal comparability across the entire Collection intact.

      Values: 
      V0
      V1
      V2
 

Bounding

• Field Definition:  The latitude and longitude of the boundaries of the tile.

               Values:

               Bounding North Latitude
               Bounding South Latitude
               Bounding East Longitude
               Bounding West Longitude

               Latitude Format Decimal Degrees: -90.000 through 90.000
               Longitude Format Decimal Degrees: -180.000 through 180.000

Collection

• Field Definition:  A collection refers to a set of Annual NLCD products that were generated with the same or very similar algorithms and methodologies to maintain temporal comparability across a collection. Minor bug fixes and algorithm improvements are permitted within a collection, as well as introducing entirely new products or regions (for example, AK, HI) that do not recreate or modify any previously released products.

      Values: 
      1
      2
 

Coordinates - Decimal Degrees

• Field Definition:  The coordinates of the scenes Center, NE Corner, NW Corner,SE Corner, SW Corner in decimal degrees.

                 Values:      
                 Scene Center Latitude and Longitude
                 Northeast (NE) Corner Latitude and Longitude
                 Northwest (NW) Corner Latitude and Longitude
                 Southeast (SE) Corner Latitude and Longitude
                 Southwest (SW) Corner Latitude and Longitude

                 Latitude Format Decimal Degrees: -90.000 through 90.000
                 Longitude Format Decimal Degrees: -180.000 through 180.000

                 Number of decimal places will vary by dataset – check collection in EE.
 

Coordinates - Degrees, Minutes, Seconds

• Field Definition:  The coordinates of the scenes Center, NE Corner, NW Corner, SE Corner, SW Corner points in degrees, minutes, seconds.

                 Values:
                 Scene Center Latitude and Longitude
                 Northeast (NE) Corner Latitude and Longitude
                 Northwest (NW) Corner Latitude and Longitude
                 Southeast (SE) Corner Latitude and Longitude
                 Southwest (SW) Corner Latitude and Longitude

                Longitude Format:
                DDDMMSS.SSH
                DDD = Degree(s) with a range of 0 through 180
                MM = Minute(s) with a range of 0 through 59
                SS.SS = Second(s) with a range of 0 through 59.99
                H = Hemisphere with E for east and W for west

                Latitude Format:
                DDMMSS.SSH
                DD = Degree(s) with a range of 0 through 90
                MM = Minutes(s) with a range of 0 through 59
                SS.SS = Second(s) with a range of 0 through 59.99
                H = Hemisphere with N for north and S for south
 

Date Product Generated Annual NLCD

• Field Definition:  The creation date of the Annual NLCD tile product.

              Format:
              YYYY/MM/DD
 

Datum

• Field Definition:  The horizontal reference system associated with the image.

Map Projection

• Field Definition:  Geographic projection of the image.
         Values:
         AEA = Albers Conical Equal Area
   

Processed Map Year 

• Field Definition:  The map year processed for the Annual NLCD products.

              Format: 
              YYYY
 

Tile Grid Horizontal

• Field Definition:  Horizontal tile number associated with the 5000 x 5000 pixel tile grid within its region.
   

Tile Grid Region

• Field Definition:  The region associated with the grid coverage area.
         Values:
         CU = CONUS
         AK = Alaska 
         HI = Hawaii 
   

Tile Grid Vertical

• Field Definition:  Semi-minor axis of earth ellipsoid in meters
   

Units

• Field Definition:  The mapping units associated with tile.
         Values:
         Meters

Version

• Field Definition:  The version number associated with the data.