NASAIntegrated aerosol optical depth and composition data from AERONET ground stations and multi-satellite retrievals, supporting air quality and long-term climate research.

This multi-sensor imagery product combines dust-sensitive spectral channels from MODIS (Terra/Aqua), VIIRS (Suomi-NPP/NOAA-20), and GOES-16/17/18 to detect and track mineral dust, wildfire smoke, and volcanic ash plumes. The dust channel composites enhance contrast between aerosol layers and the underlying surface.
Near real-time imagery is available through NASA Worldview and NOAA's GOES Image Viewer at 15-minute to 2-day refresh rates. The product is widely used by air quality forecasters, the National Weather Service, and aviation meteorologists to monitor transoceanic transport events.
Documentation, algorithm details, and background reading for MODIS/VIIRS/GOES.
Access MODIS/VIIRS/GOES through the provider portal or download it directly.
Self-paced tutorials to help you get started with MODIS/VIIRS/GOES.
An introduction to the MODIS/VIIRS/GOES dataset — what it measures, how it is produced, and when to use it.
Accessing and downloading MODIS/VIIRS/GOES dataFind, subset, and download MODIS/VIIRS/GOES data, with tips for common file formats and access tools.
Exploring MODIS/VIIRS/GOES in the AIR4US visualization toolLoad MODIS/VIIRS/GOES layers in the AIR4US visualization tool and interpret them alongside other air quality data.
Cite this dataset
NASA / NOAA. MODIS / VIIRS / GOES Imagery: Dust Channel. 2000 – Present. Accessed via the AIR4US Portal, https://worldview.earthdata.nasa.gov.