viirs-tools

viirs-tools is a Python library that provides basic algorithms for retrieving meteorological data from VIIRS (Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite) satellite shots. This project started as a diploma (or thesis) project, and the primary goals of the viirs-tools library are threefold:

1. Faster Data Processing: The library aims to make the process of working with VIIRS data much quicker than the standard approachs. The goal is to provide near-real-time in-memory data processing capabilities, allowing researchers and scientists to access and analyze the data in a more timely manner. However, it's important to note that this speed improvement may come at the cost of reduced accuracy, as the library's algorithms may not be as thoroughly tested and validated as the NASA's (or other) standard processing pipeline.

2. Easier VIIRS Data Utilization: In addition to the speed improvements, the library is designed to make it easier for researchers and scientists to work with VIIRS data.

3. Flexible Data Handling: One of the key aims of the viirs-tools library is to provide users with handy access to the underlying algorithms, allowing them to work with the data in a variety of formats, including xr.DataArray, and np.ndarray. This flexibility ensures that the library can be seamlessly integrated into a wide range of data processing workflows.

Installation

To install viirs-tools, you can use pip:

 pip install viirs-tools 

If you want to use the assimilator extra module, which allows you to download data from NASA servers:

pip install viirs-tools[assimilator]

Note that this module functions rely on the cmrfetch package, you need to install and configure it first.

Usage

The viirs-tools library provides the following core modules and their main functions:

• Runner class: recommended entry point for getting desired algs

• algs module:

  1. cloud submodule:
     • vibcm_day: Day reflectance/thermal I-bands cloud test. ¹
     • vifcm_day, vifcm_night: Day and night I-bands cloud tests used in the ².
  2. index submodule:
     • ndvi: normalized difference vegetation index
     • ndsi: normalized snow vegetation index
  3. night submodule:
     • naive: Day/night mask, based on the difference between presence of reflectance and thermal data, for both I- and M-bands
  4. water submodule:
     • water_bodies_day: Day reflectance tests for water bodies from ²
  5. lst submodule:
     • mono_window_i05, mono_window_m16, mono_window_m15: LST retrieval for I05 band, based on the LANDSAT-8 alg ³
  6. utils submodule:
     • merge_day_night: Merging of 2 datasets by day/night mask

• Assimilator module:

  1. Assimilator:
     • assimilate: Retrieving data from NASA archives using cmrfetch, with support for handy data collection process management
  2. Reading
     • read_npp_viaes_l1: Reading VIIRS/NPP Imagery Resolution 6-Min L1 Swath SDR 375m product files
     • read_npp_vmaes_l1: Reading VIIRS/NPP Moderate Resolution 6-Min L1 Swath SDR and GEO 750m product files
     • read_npp_cldmsk_l2: Reading VIIRS/SNPP Cloud Mask 6-Min Swath 750m product files
  3. ReadingHelpers
     • Contains some helper functions for reading files that aren't supported by SatPy module (some examples of using them in the previous module)

from viirs_tools import Runner, AlgsIndex

...

runner = Runner()
runner.show_algs_all()  # show all available algs from each alg type

ndvi_func = runner.get_alg_index(AlgsIndex.NDVI)
ndvi = ndvi_func(ri2, ri1)

cloud_func = runner.get_alg_cloud()
cloud_mask = cloud_func(ri1, ri2, ri3, bi4, bi5)

...

Additional tools

In the scripts folder some useful tools for local satellite data analysis could be found, such as assimilate.py script.

References

Footnotes

1. M.Piper, T.Bahr (2015). A RAPID CLOUD MASK ALGORITHM FOR SUOMI NPP VIIRS IMAGERY EDRS. ↩

2. W.Schroeder, P.Oliva, L.Giglio, I.A.Csiszar (2014). The New VIIRS 375 m active fire detection data product: Algorithm description and initial assessment. ↩ ↩²

3. U.Avdan, G.Jovanovska (2016). Algorithm for Automated Mapping of Land Surface Temperature Using LANDSAT 8 Satellite Data ↩