MISR Level 3 FIRSTLOOK Global Land product in netCDF format covering a month V002

MI3MLSNF_002 is the Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) Level 3 FIRSTLOOK Global Land product in netCDF format covering a month version 2 data product. It contains a monthly statistical summary of directional hemispherical reflectance (DHR), photosynthetically active spectral region (DHR-PAR), DHR for near-infrared band (DHR-NIR), fractional absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (FPAR), DHR-based normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and land surface bidirectional reflectance factor (BRF) model parameters. It is classified into six vegetated and one non-vegetated types. This data product is a global summary of the Level 2 land/surface parameters of interest averaged over a month and reported on a geographic grid with a resolution of 0.5 degrees by 0.5 degrees. Data collection for this product is ongoing. This collection contains the Leaf Area Index (LAI). FIRSTLOOK processing uses the new time dependence of the Atmospheric and Surface Climatology (TASC) from the same month/previous year. The TASC data set now contains snow-ice and ocean surface wind speed values that are updated on a monthly basis. Therefore, these data sets cannot be generated until the end of the month. Products generated are distinguished by the presence of FIRSTLOOK in the file names. The MISR instrument consists of nine push-broom cameras that measure radiance in four spectral bands. Global coverage is achieved in nine days. The cameras are arranged with one camera pointing toward the nadir, four forward, and four aftward. It takes seven minutes for all nine cameras to view the exact surface location. The view angles relative to the surface reference ellipsoid are 0, 26.1, 45.6, 60.0, and 70.5 degrees. The spectral band shapes are nominally Gaussian, centered at 443, 555, 670, and 865 nm. MISR is designed to view Earth with cameras pointed in 9 different directions. As the instrument flies overhead, all nine cameras successfully imaged each piece of Earth's surface below in 4 wavelengths (blue, green, red, and near-infrared). MISR aims to improve our understanding of the effects of sunlight on Earth and distinguish different types of clouds, particles, and surfaces. Specifically, MISR monitors the monthly, seasonal, and long-term trends in three areas: 1) amount and type of atmospheric particles (aerosols), including those formed by natural sources and by human activities; 2) amounts, types, and heights of clouds, and 3) distribution of land surface cover, including vegetation canopy structure.