![NASA/VIIRS/002/VNP46A2](https://developers.google.com/earth-engine/datasets/images/NASA/NASA_VIIRS_002_VNP46A2_sample.png) Dataset Availability : 2012-01-19T00:00:00Z--2026-11-02T00:00:00Z Dataset Producer : [NASA LAADS DAAC](https://doi.org/10.5067/VIIRS/VNP46A2.002) Cadence : 1 Day Tags : [brdf](https://developers.google.com/earth-engine/datasets/tags/brdf) [daily](https://developers.google.com/earth-engine/datasets/tags/daily) [nasa](https://developers.google.com/earth-engine/datasets/tags/nasa) [nighttime](https://developers.google.com/earth-engine/datasets/tags/nighttime) [noaa](https://developers.google.com/earth-engine/datasets/tags/noaa) [population](https://developers.google.com/earth-engine/datasets/tags/population) [viirs](https://developers.google.com/earth-engine/datasets/tags/viirs) #### Description The Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (SNPP) Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) supports a Day-Night Band (DNB) sensor that provides global daily measurements of nocturnal visible and near-infrared(NIR) light that are suitable for Earth system science and applications. The VIIRS DNB's ultra-sensitivity in lowlight conditions enable us to generate a new set of science-quality nighttime products that manifest substantial improvements in sensor resolution and calibration when compared to the previous era of Defense Meteorological Satellite Program/Operational Linescan System's (DMSP/OLS) nighttime lights image products. Such improvements allow the VIIRS DNB products to better monitor both the magnitude and signature of nighttime phenomena, and anthropogenic sources of light emissions. VNP46A2 is the short-name for the daily moonlight- and atmosphere-corrected Nighttime Lights (NTL) product called VIIRS/NPP Gap-Filled Lunar BRDF-Adjusted Nighttime Lights Daily L3 Global 500m Linear Lat Lon Grid. Documentation: - [User's Guide](https://ladsweb.modaps.eosdis.nasa.gov/api/v2/content/archives/Document%20Archive/Science%20Data%20Product%20Documentation/VIIRS_Black_Marble_UG_v1.3_Sep_2022.pdf) - [Algorithm Theoretical Basis Document (ATBD)](https://ladsweb.modaps.eosdis.nasa.gov/api/v2/content/archives/Document%20Archive/Science%20Data%20Product%20Documentation/Product%20Generation%20Algorithms/VIIRS_Black_Marble_ATBD_v1.1_July_2020.pdf) - [General Documentation](https://ladsweb.modaps.eosdis.nasa.gov/missions-and-measurements/products/VNP46A2/) ### Bands **Bands** Pixel size: 500 meters (all bands) | Name | Min | Max | Pixel Size | Description | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | `DNB_BRDF_Corrected_NTL` | 0 | 6553.4 | 500 meters | BRDF corrected DNB NTL | | `Gap_Filled_DNB_BRDF_Corrected_NTL` | 0 | 6553.4 | 500 meters | Gap Filled BRDF corrected DNB NTL | | `DNB_Lunar_Irradiance` | 0 | 6553.4 | 500 meters | DNB Lunar Irradiance | | `Latest_High_Quality_Retrieval` | | | 500 meters | Latest high quality BRDF corrected DNB radiance retrieval | | `Mandatory_Quality_Flag` | 0 | 3 | 500 meters | Mandatory quality flag | | `Snow_Flag` | 0 | 1 | 500 meters | Flag for snow cover | | `QF_Cloud_Mask` | | | 500 meters | Quality flag for cloud mask | | Bitmask for QF_Cloud_Mask - Bit 0: Day/Night - 0: Night - 1: Day - Bits 1-3: Land/Water Background - 0: Land \& Desert - 1: Land no Desert - 2: Inland Water - 3: Sea Water - 5: Coastal - Bits 4-5: Cloud Mask Quality - 0: Poor - 1: Low - 2: Medium - 3: High - Bits 6-7: Cloud Detection Results \& Confidence Indicator - 0: Confident Clear - 1: Probably Clear - 2: Probably Cloudy - 3: Confident Cloudy - Bit 8: Shadow Detected - 0: No - 1: Yes - Bit 9: Cirrus Detection (IR) (BTM15 - BTM16) - 0: No cloud - 1: Cloud - Bit 10: Snow/Ice Surface - 0: No Snow/Ice - 1: Snow/Ice |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| **Mandatory_Quality_Flag Class Table** | Value | Color | Description | |---|---|---| | 0 | None | High-quality, Persistent nighttime lights | | 1 | None | High-quality, Ephemeral nighttime Lights | | 2 | None | Poor-quality, Outlier, potential cloud contamination, or other issues | | 255 | None | No retrieval, Fill value (masked out on ingestion) | **Snow_Flag Class Table** | Value | Color | Description | |---|---|---| | 0 | None | No Snow/Ice | | 1 | None | Snow/Ice | ### Terms of Use **Terms of Use** LP DAAC NASA data are freely accessible; however, when an author publishes these data or works based on the data, it is requested that the author cite the datasets within the text of the publication and include a reference to them in the reference list. ### Citations Citations: - Román, M.O., Wang, Z., Sun, Q., Kalb, V., Miller, S.D., Molthan, A., Schultz, L., Bell, J., Stokes, E.C., Pandey, B. and Seto, K.C., et al. (2018). NASA's Black Marble nighttime lights product suite. Remote Sensing of Environment 210, 113-143. [10.1016/j.rse.2018.03.017](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2018.03.017) ### DOIs - ### Explore with Earth Engine > [!NOTE] > **Important:** Earth Engine is a platform for petabyte-scale scientific analysis and visualization of geospatial datasets, both for public benefit and for business and government users. Earth Engine is free to use for research, education, and nonprofit use. To get started, please [register for Earth Engine access.](https://console.cloud.google.com/earth-engine) ### Code Editor (JavaScript) ```javascript var dataset = ee.ImageCollection('NASA/VIIRS/002/VNP46A2') .filter(ee.Filter.date('2013-01-01', '2013-03-01')); var nighttime = dataset.select('Gap_Filled_DNB_BRDF_Corrected_NTL'); var nighttimeVis = {min: 0.0, max: 1.0}; Map.setCenter(-77.1056, 38.8904, 3); Map.addLayer(nighttime, nighttimeVis, 'Nighttime'); ``` [Open in Code Editor](https://code.earthengine.google.com/?scriptPath=Examples:Datasets/NASA/NASA_VIIRS_002_VNP46A2) [VNP46A2: VIIRS Lunar Gap-Filled BRDF Nighttime Lights Daily L3 Global 500m](https://developers.google.com/earth-engine/datasets/catalog/NASA_VIIRS_002_VNP46A2) The Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (SNPP) Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) supports a Day-Night Band (DNB) sensor that provides global daily measurements of nocturnal visible and near-infrared(NIR) light that are suitable for Earth system science and applications. The VIIRS DNB's ultra-sensitivity in lowlight conditions enable us to generate a ... NASA/VIIRS/002/VNP46A2, brdf,daily,nasa,nighttime,noaa,population,viirs 2012-01-19T00:00:00Z/2026-11-02T00:00:00Z -90 -180 90 180 Google Earth Engine https://developers.google.com/earth-engine/datasets - [https://doi.org/10.5067/VIIRS/VNP46A2.002](https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.5067/VIIRS/VNP46A2.002) - [https://doi.org/10.5067/VIIRS/VNP46A2.002](https://doi.org/https://developers.google.com/earth-engine/datasets/catalog/NASA_VIIRS_002_VNP46A2)