Step 1: Get an Earthdata Login Account
A NASA EOSDIS Earthdata Login account is required for downloading data and tools from ASF. Registering for an Earthdata Login account is free.
If you try to login to the ASF Vertex data portal and do not have an account, you will be directed to the Earthdata Login registration site.
Your Earthdata Login username and password are required to download data from ASF using the Vertex data portal or API, and to download ASF Tools and datasets from the ASF website.
- All of the datasets at ASF are free, and most are available to download without restriction.
- The JERS-1 and RADARSAT-1 datasets have restricted access and require submission of a data access request form.
Step 2: Find SAR Data
Datasets Available from ASF DAAC
| Dataset | Dates | Find Data | Common Subjects | Spatial Coverage | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open access: Free -- log in and download | |||||
| ALOS PALSAR | 2006 to 2011 | Vertex | Broad applications: glaciers, landslides, volcanoes, earthquakes, oil seeps, wetlands, sea ice, and more. The RTC product is GIS-ready. |  The Americas, Antarctica, and select global sites | |
| Repeat Coverage: 46 days Products: L1.0, L1.1 single look complex (SLC), L1.5 ground-range detected image, Hi-res RTC image, Low-res RTC image. More Information: Data Formats, ALOS PALSAR, ALOS PALSAR RTC | |||||
| Sentinel-1 | 2014-10-04 to Ongoing | Vertex | Broad applications: volcanoes, earthquakes, glaciers, reservoir water volume, land subsidence, sea ice, flooding, oceans, and more. |  Global | |
| Repeat Coverage: 6 days Products: L0 raw, L1 single look complex (SLC), L1 ground-range detected mid-res single-pol (GRD-MS), L1 ground-range detected high-res single-pol (GRD-HS), L1 ground-range detected mid-res dual-pol (GRD-MD), L1 ground-range detected high-res dual-pol (GRD-HD), L2 ocean (OCN) More Information: Data Formats, ASF Sentinel-1 page, ESA Sentinel-1 page | |||||
| UAVSAR (Airborne SAR) | 2008-04-28 to Ongoing | Vertex | Select locations: oil spills, earthquakes, volcanoes, oceans, land cover, and more. |  Targeted worldwide sites | |
| Repeat Coverage: Non-cyclic Products: Single look complex (SLC), multi-look complex cross products, compress stokes matrix, ground-projected calibrated cross products, DEM More Information: Data Formats, ASF UAVSAR page, NASA/JPL UAVSAR page | |||||
| ERS-1 | 1991-08-08 to 1997-09-28 | Vertex | Polar regions and processes (sea ice, Arctic, Antarctica) |  Primarily polar, within station masks of the ASF and McMurdo ground stations | |
| Repeat Coverage: 35 days Products: L0 raw, L1 image On Request: Single look complex (SLC), L1 (amplitude images, even numbered frames) More Information: Data Formats, ASF ERS-1 page, ESA ERS pages | |||||
| ERS-2 | 1995-04-20 to 2011-07-03 | Vertex | Polar regions and processes (sea ice, Arctic, Antarctica). |  Primarily polar, within station masks of the ASF and McMurdo ground stations | |
| Repeat Coverage: 35 days Products: L0 raw, L1 image On Request: Single look complex (SLC), L1 (amplitude images, even numbered frames) More Information: Data Formats, ASF ERS-2 page, ESA ERS pages | |||||
| AIRSAR (Airborne SAR) | 1990 to 2004 | Vertex | Select locations: oceans, coasts, forests, deforestation, geology, hydrology, earthquakes, archeaology, and more. |  Selected sites worldwide | |
| Repeat Coverage: Non-cyclic Products: Along-track interferometry, 3-frequency polarimetry, L-Band compressed stokes matrix, P-Band compressed stokes matrix, C-Band DEM and compressed stokes matrix More Information: Data Formats, ASF AIRSAR page, NASA/JPL AIRSAR pages | |||||
| Post-RAMP Antarctica Mosaics | 2004 and 2007 | Get RAMP data page | Antarctica ice sheets (emphasis on velocities): Drygalsky Ice Tongue (David Glacier), Thwaites Glacier, and Pine Island Glacier. | Selected Antarctica ice sheets | |
| Products: SAR mosaics, velocity files, 1963 mosaic of coastal Antarctica also provided for comparison purposes More Information: ASF Get RAMP data page | |||||
| RAMP: Antarctica Tiles Interface | 1997 and 2000 | Get RAMP data page | Historic, high-resolution map of Antarctica: ice-sheet morphology, rock outcrops, research infrastructure, coastline, and more. | Antarctica | |
| Products: Tiles, mosaics More Information: ASF RAMP pages | |||||
| Sea Ice MEaSUREs | 1995 to 2012 | Sea Ice MEaSUREs data page | Arctic Ocean sea ice motion with three-day radar snapshots as the ice goes through dramatic changes over 11 years. | Arctic Ocean | |
| Products: Lagrangian, 3-day gridded, Eularian More Information: ASF Sea Ice MEaSUREs pages | |||||
| Seasat | 1978-06-28 to 1978-10-10 | Vertex | Portions of Northern Hemisphere oceans and land; particularly useful as historic data from the first NASA SAR mission (data processed by ASF in 2013). | Regions of Northern Hemisphere, including oceans and N. America | |
| Repeat Coverage: 3-day at launch, 17-day after mid-August Products: L1 image, GeoTIFF More Information: Data Formats, ASF Seasat pages | |||||
| SMAP | 2015-04-15 to 2015-07-07 | Vertex | Soil moisture and freeze/thaw state (detailed data from 3 months in 2015). Benchmark data for flood, landslide, and drought monitoring; agricultural planning; and climate forecasting. | Global | |
| Repeat Coverage: 3 days Products 2015-4-15 to 2015-07-07: L1A raw, L1B low-res image, L1C high-res image Products 2015-07-07: L1A receive only, raw More Information: Data Formats, ASF SMAP pages, NASA/JPL SMAP pages, NSIDC DAAC additional SMAP products | |||||
| Terrestrial Ecology | 2007 to 2010 | ASF Terrestrial ecology data pages | Useful for seeing SAR applications for ecological research. | 42 selected field sites, such as flux tower locations | |
| Repeat Coverage: Varied or none Products: GeoTIFF More Information: ASF Terrestrial Ecology pages | |||||
| Wetlands MEaSUREs | Varied, 1993 to 2009 | ASF Wetlands MEaSUREs data page | Inundated wetlands, including their role in climate, biogeochemistry, hydrology, and biodiversity. | Amazon, Alaska, the Americas, global (coarse resolution) | |
| Products: Fine-resolution, 100-meter maps of wetland extent, vegetation type, and seasonal inundation dynamics for continental-scale areas covering crucial wetland regions; global, 10-day mappings of inundation extent at ~25-km resolution; interactive time-series tool and time-series animation; GeoTIFF More Information: ASF Wetlands MEaSUREs pages | |||||
| Restricted Data Access Request must be submitted: Applicant must currently be living in the United States | |||||
| JERS-1 | 1992-05-20 to 1998-10-10 | Vertex or ASF Wetlands MEaSUREs data page for mosaics (open access) | Important forests of the world: Southeast Asia, Africa, Central America, South America (Amazon Basin), and boreal North America. |  Global | |
| Repeat Coverage: 44 days Products: L0 raw, L1 (amplitude imagery, processed images), mosaics - open access through Wetlands MEaSUREs (includes Amazon Low Flood, Amazon High Flood, North America Winter Texture, North America Summer Texture, North America Summer Backscatter) On Request: Single look complex (SLC), L1 (amplitude imagery, even frames) More Information: Data Formats, ASF JERS-1 page, JAXA JERS-1 pages | |||||
| RADARSAT-1 | 1995-02-01 to 2008-05-02 | Vertex | Arctic sea ice and other broad applications: volcanoes, ocean winds, ecology, soil moisture, wetlands, flooding, and more. |  Global | |
| Repeat Coverage: 24 days Products: L0 raw, L1 image More Information: ASF RADARSAT-1 page, CSA RADARSAT-1 pages | |||||
Some ALOS PALSAR data are not available through the DAAC
Step 3: Use SAR data
How to View Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) Imagery
Most SAR products are delivered in either CEOS or GeoTIFF file formats. These file formats will not display in both Windows and Mac default image viewers. However, you can view GeoTIFFs in a GIS program. In addition, both GeoTIFF and CEOS images can be viewed using free downloadable software from ASF called ASFView. ASFView is included when you download ASF’s MapReady software.
| File Format | Dataset | Needed to View |
|---|---|---|
| CEOS L1 and L1.5 products | ERS-1, ERS-2, JERS-1, RADARSAT-1, ALOS PALSAR | ASFView (included with ASF MapReady) ASF Data Recipes: How to View and Geocode CEOS Data in ASF MapReady |
| GeoTIFF products | PALSAR RTC Sentinel-1 – Interferograms | ArcGIS, QGIS ASF Data Recipes: How to View Radiometrically Terrain-Corrected (RTC) Images in ArcGIS and How to View Radiometrically Terrain-Corrected (RTC) Images in QGIS |
| GeoTIFF products | Terrestrial Ecology, Seasat | ArcGIS, QGIS, ASFView (included with ASF MapReady) |
Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and GIS
Many users want to work with SAR imagery in a GIS program, which necessitates that the data be in the GeoTIFF format. GeoTIFFs may be viewed in GIS programs.
GeoTIFF
PALSAR RTC GeoTIFF products are in gamma0. They can be converted to sigma0 for better viewing in GIS.
CEOS
If the data are in CEOS format, they must be converted to GeoTIFF to use in GIS.
Types of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) Products
New users may prefer to start with imagery and products derived from imagery. These products are given processing-level numbers, such as L1 and L2. Raw, unprocessed data, is L0 or L1.0.
| Type | Processing Level | Image | Description | Tools |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raw Data | L0, L1.0, Raw | Unfocused | Must be focused using a SAR processor | Open source • ISCE Commercial • ENVI • GAMMA |
| Single Look Complex | L1.1, SLC | Focused but speckled | Contains amplitude and phase information Used for InSAR | Open source • ASF HyP3 • Sentinel-1 Toolbox • PolSARpro |
| Amplitude | L1, L1.5, Ground Range Detected (GRD) | Multi-looked, Viewable | Can be visualized without additional processing | Open source • ASF MapReady • Sentinel-1 Toolbox |
| Corrected amplitude | GeoTIFF | Viewable, GIS ready | Some level of georeferencing has been applied to the image | Open source • QGIS Commercial • ArcGIS |
| Corrected amplitude | Radiometric Terrain Correction (RTC) | Viewable, GIS ready | Radiometric and terrain correction have been applied to the image | Open source • QGIS Commercial • ArcGIS |
Data Formats and Files for Datasets Available from ASF
| ALOS PALSAR | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Format | Product Name | Product Files | Processing Level | Open-Source Tools | Used For |
| CEOS | L1.0 | LED, IMG, VOL, TRL | Raw | N/A | Production of higher-level products |
| L1.1 Complex | SLC | Sentinel-1 Toolbox, PolSARpro | Interferometry | ||
| L1.5 Image | Amplitude | MapReady, ASFView (part of MapReady), Sentinel-1 Toolbox, PolSARpro | Visualization | ||
| ALOS PALSAR RTC | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Format | Product Name | Product Files | Processing Level | Open-Source Tools | Used For |
| GeoTIFF | Hi-Res Terrain Corrected | tif , jpg, xml , kmz , wld | Geocoded Amplitude | QGIS, Graphics viewing software | Visualization; GIS-compatible |
| Low-Res Terrain Corrected | |||||
| Sentinel-1 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Format | Product Name | Product Files | Processing Level | Open-Source Tools | Used For |
| SAFE | L0 raw data | tif , xml , xsd, kml , html, png, pdf, safe | Raw | N/A | Production of higher-level products |
| GeoTIFF | L1 SLC | SLC | ASF HyP3, Sentinel-1 Toolbox, PolSARpro | Interferometry | |
| L1 Detected High-Res Dual-Pol | Georeferenced Amplitude | ASF HyP3, Sentinel-1 Toolbox, PolSARpro | Visualization | ||
| L1 Detected High-Res Single-Pol | ASF HyP3, Sentinel-1 Toolbox | ||||
| L1 Detected Mid-Res Dual-Pol | ASF HyP3, Sentinel-1 Toolbox, PolSARpro | ||||
| L1 Detected Mid-Res Single-Pol | ASF HyP3, Sentinel-1 Toolbox | ||||
| NetCDF | OCN | nc, xsd , kml , html, png, pdf, safe | L2 | Sentinel-1 Toolbox, Panoply | Ocean wind, wave and currents |
| UAVSAR PolSAR | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Format | Product Name | Product Files | Processing Level | Open-Source Tools | Used For |
| UAVSAR | Ground Projected Complex | grd, ann | Georeferenced Amplitude | MapReady, PolSARpro | Visualization |
| Multi-Look Complex | mic, ann | MLC | Polarimetry | ||
| Ground Projected Complex, 3X3 | grd, ann | Georeferenced Amplitude | Visualization | ||
| Ground Projected Complex, 5X5 | Visualization | ||||
| Compressed Stokes Matrix | dat, ann | AIRSAR compressed stokes matrix | Polarimetry | ||
| GeoTIFF | Pauli Decomposition | tif | MLC polarimetric decomposition | QGIS; graphics viewing software | Visualization; GIS compatible |
| GeoTIFF Height | DEM | QGIS | DEM | ||
| KMZ | Google Earth KMZ | kmz | KML compressed | Google Earth | Visualization |
| UAVSAR RPI | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Format | Product Name | Product Files | Processing Level | Open-Source Tools | Used For |
| UAVSAR | Amplitude | amp1, amp2, ann | Amplitude | MapReady PolSARpro | Visualization |
| Ground Projected Amplitude | amp1.grd, amp2.grd, hgt.grd, ann | Georeferenced Amplitude | |||
| Interferogram | int, unw, cor, ann | Interferogram | |||
| Ground Projected Interferogram | cor.grd, hgt.grd, int.grd, unw.grd, ann | ||||
| KMZ | Google Earth KMZ | amp1.kmz, amp2.kmz, cor.kmz, hgt.kmz, int.kmz, osr.kmz, unw.kmz | Google Earth | ||
| AIRSAR TOPSAR | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Format | Product Name | Product Files | Open-Source Tools | Used For | |
| AIRSAR | C-band DEM and Compressed Stokes Matrix | c.corgr, c.demi2, c.vvi2 | MapReady PolSARpro | Polarimetry | |
| L-band Compressed Stokes Matrix | l.datgr | ||||
| P-band Compressed Stokes Matrix | p.datgr | PolSARpro | |||
| AIRSAR PolSAR - AIRSAR ATI (Experimental) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Format | Product Name | Product Files | Processing Level | Open-Source Tools | Used For |
| AIRSAR | 3-Frequency Polarimetry | c.dat, l.dat, p.dat | Compressed stokes matrix | MapReady PolSARpro | Polarimetry |
| JPG | Along-Track Interferometry | *intf*, *uwScc*, *az*, *uwWrp*, *uwWcc*, *uwWrp, *par, *ppp | SLC, MLC | N/A | Ocean current velocity measurement |
| ERS-1, ERS-2, JERS-1, RADARSAT-1 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Format | Product Name | Product Files | Processing Level | Open-Source Tools | Used For |
| CEOS | L0 | D, L, P, kml, jpg | Raw | N/A | Production of higher-level products |
| L1 Image | Amplitude | MapReady, ASF View (part of MapReady), Sentinel-1 Toolbox | Visualization | ||
Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) Guides
ASF SAR User’s Guide
In 1993, when the Alaska Satellite Facility was still named the Alaska SAR Facility, ASF produced a definitive SAR User’s Guide that scientists continue to use today.
NOAA SAR Marine User’s Manual
The NOAA SAR Marine User’s Manual is 464 pages long, with over 240 images and figures.
Alaska Satellite Facility Software Tools Manual
This manual, created in 2003, emphasizes interferometry.