Earthdata Forum

Hi there,

I need MOD44B (vegetation continuous fields) Collection 6 data. AFAIK, it's no longer available on the web anywhere. I was wondering if there was an archive somewhere I could use. Notably, Collection 6.1 is not an option for me because all data outside 50N-50S are missing and I need data there.

Thanks,
Brad

I also should've noted that MOD44B.006 is one of the main drivers of MiCASA, a NASA product available at GES DISC: https://www.earthdata.nasa.gov/data/catalog/ges-disc-micasa-flux-3h-1 (and elsewhere) and that by removing MOD44B.006 from all public archives, we've lost reproducibility. Probably didn't mention it because it makes me so mad it's hard to be professional with it on my mind.

Hi @bradweir We are looking into this. The MOD44B 6.1 should have the exact same spatial extent and number of granules each year as the 6.0 data.

The tiles are the same, but all data outside of 50N-50S has been masked out.

Hi there,

Just checking back to see if there's been any progress.

Thanks,
Brad

Thank you for your question regarding the absence of MOD44B (Vegetation Continuous Fields; VCF) data over Antarctica in MODIS Collection 6.1.

During the transition from Collection 6 to Collection 6.1, the performance of the VCF algorithm using the updated MOD09 surface reflectance inputs was evaluated. That assessment showed that MOD44B data quality south of approximately 50 degrees latitude no longer met acceptable scientific standards. The degradation resulted from changes in the MOD09 product that introduced challenges within the legacy VCF algorithm.

Based on these findings, the decision was made to mask out these lower‑quality high‑latitude data in Collection 6.1 rather than release products that did not meet science quality expectations.

The LP DAAC does not maintain previous versions of MODIS data aside from a small subset of data called the "Golden Month". Additional information on MODIS Golden Month Data can be found on the MODIS Instrument Page on the NASA Earthdata Website.