MODIS Geospatial Dataset

In this file, the necessary technical details of the dataset is explained. It is worth noting that, MODIS has many products and here only useful products for the Canadian hydrological community are described.

Location of the MODIS Dataset Files

The MODIS geospatial dataset files are located under the following directory accessible from multiple clusters:

# DRAC Graham HPC location
/project/rpp-kshook/Climate_Forcing_Data/geospatial-data/MODIS/ #rpp-kshook allocation

# UCalgary ARC HPC location
/work/comphyd_lab/data/geospatial-data/MODIS #comphyd_lab allocation

# Perdue University Anvil HPC location
/anvil/datasets/geospatial # Anvil community storage

And the structure of the files is as following:

/path/to/dataset/dir/
├── MCD12Q1.006
│   ├── 2001.01.01
│   │   ├── MCD12Q1.A2001001.h00v08.006.2018142182903.hdf
│   │   ├── MCD12Q1.A2001001.h00v08.006.2018142182903.hdf.xml
│   │   ├── MCD12Q1.A2001001.h00v09.006.2018142182901.hdf
│   │   ├── MCD12Q1.A2001001.h00v09.006.2018142182901.hdf.xml
│   │   ├── .
│   │   ├── .
│   │   ├── .
│   │   ├── MCD12Q1.A2001001.h35v10.006.2018142183401.hdf
│   │   └── MCD12Q1.A2001001.h35v10.006.2018142183401.hdf.xml
│   ├── 2002.01.01
│   │   ├── MCD12Q1.A2002001.h00v08.006.2018143043830.hdf
│   │   ├── MCD12Q1.A2002001.h00v08.006.2018143043830.hdf.xml
│   │   ├── MCD12Q1.A2002001.h00v09.006.2018143043923.hdf
│   │   ├── MCD12Q1.A2002001.h00v09.006.2018143043923.hdf.xml
│   │   ├── .
│   │   ├── .
│   │   ├── .
│   │   ├── MCD12Q1.A2002001.h35v10.006.2018143070809.hdf
│   │   └── MCD12Q1.A2002001.h35v10.006.2018143070809.hdf.xml
│   .
│   .
│   .
│   ├── %YYYY.01.01
│   │   ├── MCD12Q1.A{%Y}001.h00v08.006.{%HASHNUM}.hdf
│   │   ├── MCD12Q1.A{%Y}001.h00v08.006.{%HASHNUM}.hdf.xml
│   │   .
│   │   .
│   │   .
│   .
│   .
│   .
└── %var
    ├── .
    ├── .
    ├── .
    └── .

Dataset Variables

This dataset has 1 main variable that is described in the following table:

#

Variable Name (keyword for --variable)

Description

Comments

1

MCD12Q1.006

Global land cover classes

This dataset is retired, though a vailable Link

2

MCD12Q1.061

Global land cover classes

The most up -to-date MODIS L andcover dataset Link

3

MOD16A2.061

Global ET/PET/LE/PLE Land

8-day tim e-series of ev apotrans piration (ET) and its p otential value (PET), Latent Heat flux (LE) and its p otential value (PLE) link

4

MOD16A2GF.061

Global gap-filled ET/PET/LE/PLE Land

8-day tim e-series of ev apotrans piration (ET) and its p otential value (PET), Latent Heat flux (LE) and its p otential value (PLE) link

5

MYD16A2.061

Global ET/PET/LE/PLE Aqua

8-day tim e-series of ev apotrans piration (ET) and its p otential value (PET), Latent Heat flux (LE) and its p otential value (PLE) link

6

MOD16A3GF.061

Global gap-filled ET/PET/LE/PLE Land

Annual tim e-series of ev apotrans piration (ET) and its p otential value (PET), Latent Heat flux (LE) and its p otential value (PLE) link

[!WARNING] Currently, gistool only extracts ET values from MOD16A2.061, MOD16A2GF.061, MYD16A2.061, MOD16A3GF.061 variables. This is a shortcoming of gistool and will be resolved in the future versions.

Spatial and Temporal Extents

Spatial and Temporal Extents

#

Variable Name (keyword for –variable)

Longitude Extents

Latitude Extents

Temporal Extents

1

MCD12Q1.006

-180 ° to +180 °

-90 ° to +90 °

2001-01-01 to 2020-01-01

2

MCD12Q1.061

-180 ° to +180 °

-90 ° to +90 °

2001-01-01 to 2022-01-01

3

MOD16A2.061

-180 ° to +180 °

-90 ° to +90 °

2021-01-01 to 2024-02-10

4

MOD16A2GF.061

-180 ° to +180 °

-90 ° to +90 °

2000-01-01 to 2023-12-27

5

MYD16A2.061

-180 ° to +180 °

-90 ° to +90 °

2021-01-01 to 2024-02-18

6

MOD16A3GF.061

-180 ° to +180 °

-90 ° to +90 °

2000-02-18 to 2023-01-01

[!NOTE] The spatial resolution of MODIS datasets is 500m globally.

Other relevant information

Land Cover Types

Below the land cover types for each values of the generated .tif files by gistool is detailed based on [1]. These classes apply to the following variables of the MODIS datasets: 1. MCD12Q1.006 and 2. MCD12Q1.061.

Class Value

Name

Land Cover Description

1

Evergreen Needleleaf Forests

Dominated by evergreen conifer trees (canopy>2m). Tree cover>60%.

2

Evergreen Broadleaf Forests

Dominated by evergreen broadleaf and palmate trees (canopy >2m). Tree cover >60%.

3

Deciduous Needleleaf Forests

Dominated by deciduous needleleaf (larch) trees (canopy >2m). Tree cover >60%.

4

Deciduous Broadleaf Forests

Dominated by deciduous broadleaf trees (canopy >2m). Tree cover >60%.

5

Mixed Forests

Dominated by neither deciduous nor evergreen (40-60% of each) tree type (canopy >2m). Tree cover >60%.

6

Closed Shrublands

Dominated by woody perennials (1-2m height) >60% cover.

7

Open Shrublands

Dominated by woody perennials (1-2m height) 10-60% cover.

8

Woody Savannas

Tree cover 30-60% (canopy >2m).

9

Savannas

Tree cover 10-30% (canopy >2m).

10

Grasslands

Dominated by herbaceous annuals (<2m).

11

Permanent Wetlands

Permanently inundated lands with 30-60% water cover and >10% vegetated cover.

12

Croplands

At least 60% of area is cultivated cropland.

13

Urban and Built-up Lands

At least 30% impervious surface area including building materials, asphalt, and vehicles.

14

Cropland/Natural Vegetation Mosaics

Mosaics of small-scale cultivation 40-60% with natural tree, shrub, or herbaceous vegetation.

15

Permanent Snow and Ice

At least 60% of area is covered by snow and ice for at least 10 months of the year.

16

Barren

At least 60% of area is non-vegetated barren (sand, rock, soil) areas with less than 10% veg- etation.

17

Water Bodies

At least 60% of area is covered by permanent wa- ter bodies.

255

Unclassified

Has not received a map label because of missing inputs.

Also, the details of the above table has been included in the following files: modis_classes.csv.

ET Values

Based on [2], the ET values calculated from the following variables of the MODIS dataset come with a scale factor of 0.1. In other words, final_values = gistool_outputs * 0.1:

  1. MOD16A2.061

  2. MOD16A2GF.061

  3. MYD16A2.061

  4. MOD16A3GF.061