The MODIS Land product quality assessment approach

The correct interpretation of scientific information from global, long-term series of remote sensing products requires the ability to discriminate between product artifacts and changes in the Earth processes being monitored. A suite of global land surface products is made from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument data. Quality assessment (QA) is an integral part of this production chain and focuses on evaluating and documenting the scientific quality of the products with respect to their intended performance. This paper describes the QA approach adopted by the MODIS Land (MODLAND) Science Team and coordinated by the MODIS Land Data Operational Product Evaluation (LDOPE) facility. The described methodology represents a new approach for assessing and ensuring the performance of land remote sensing products that are generated on a systematic basis.