Understanding Land Surface Temperature Dynamics

From development and land cover differences to elevation, many factors influence land surface temperature (LST) dynamics. The Earth’s surface temperature can be measured using LST data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) onboard the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Aqua and Terra satellites and the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) sensor onboard the Terra satellite. LST measurements can be used to study climatic phenomena such as the urban heat island (UHI) effect and deadly heatwaves. This data visualization was created using MODIS and ASTER data distributed by NASA’s Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center (LP DAAC), located at the USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center. For more information: LP DAAC: https://lpdaac.usgs.gov/ MODIS LST: http://doi.org/10.5067/MODIS/MYD11A2.006; http://doi.org/10.5067/MODIS/MOD11C3.006 MODIS Leaf Area Index: http://doi.org/10.5067/MODIS/MYD15A2H.006 ASTER Surface Kinetic Temperature:http://doi.org/10.5067/ASTER/AST_08.003 ASTER Level 1 Precision Terrain Corrected Registered at-sensor Radiance: http://doi.org/10.5067/ASTER/AST_L1T.003