VIIRS/NPP Photosynthetically Active Radiation Daily L3 Global 1km SIN Grid V002

The VNP18A2 Version 2 is a NASA/NOAA Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (Suomi NPP) Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) Photosynthetically Active Radiation (PAR) gridded Level 3 product. It is produced at 1 kilometer pixel resolution at daily intervals. PAR is the incident solar radiation in the visible spectrum (400-700 nanometers) and is a significant variable in land surface models (LSMs), receiving increased attention due to its importance for the management and operation of solar energy systems.

The VNP18 algorithm adapts the narrowband look-up table (LUT) approach to estimate PAR. The LUTs consider different types of loadings of aerosols and clouds at a variety of illumination and viewing geometry. The Algorithm Theoretical Basis Document (ATBD) is forthcoming and will provide additional details regarding the methodology used to create the data.

Provided in the VNP18A2 product are variables for instantaneous total, direct, and diffuse PAR, as well as 3-hour PAR, daily mean PAR, and a quality variable.

Data and Resources

Additional Info

Field Value
Maintainer Earthdata Forum
Last Updated August 18, 2026, 02:13 (UTC)
Created June 3, 2026, 00:27 (UTC)
accessLevel public
bureauCode {026:00}
catalog_conformsTo https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema
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harvest_source_id b99e41c6-fe79-4c19-bbc3-9b6c8111bfac
harvest_source_title Science Discovery Engine
identifier 10.5067/VIIRS/VNP18A2.002
license https://www.usa.gov/government-works
modified 2026-08-10T22:16:02Z
programCode {026:000}
publisher LP DAAC;NASA/GSFC/SED/ESD/TISL/LandSIPS
resource-type Dataset
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source_hash 2f95685f0c5ef19b4e97efe32a7158b01d7bf305dc54dd659d64a70ad975e699
source_schema_version 1.1
spatial ["CARTESIAN", [{"NorthBoundingCoordinate": 90, "WestBoundingCoordinate": -180, "EastBoundingCoordinate": 180, "SouthBoundingCoordinate": -90}]]
temporal 2012-01-19/2026-08-10
theme {"Earth Science"}