Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Skip to content
  • Feedback

    • NOAA Polar Orbiting Satellite (POES) Global Visible and Infrared Band Data from ESSA (1966 - 1972) and NOAA (1972 - 1978) Satellites

    Metadata Updated: December 12, 2025

    The NOAA Polar Orbiting Satellite (POES) Global Visible and Infrared Band Data from ESSA (1966 - 1972) and NOAA (1972 - 1978) Satellites data set, provided in NetCDF format, was created by scanning satellite images held in the NCEI Physical Archives. Data were scanned from either 35 mm film or paper photographs, then converted to NetCDF format with navigation information to improve accessibility and use in modern satellite applications. Data are mapped to a polar stereographic grid with a grid cell size of approximately 10 km. Visible and infrared data are available for both southern and northern hemispheres within this data collection but may not be available for all dates. Each scanned image's NetCDF file includes the raw scanned data, in addition to the processed imagery that has undergone pseudo-calibration and has been navigated to include location information. The original scans are archived via a separate Submission Agreement. Most of the scanning and all of the navigation and processing was done at the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC). The NOAA team at NSIDC maintains the User’s Guide documentation for this data set, and provides a link so that users who search NSIDC’s site will find the data set. The data are archived at and distributed by NCEI.

    The ESSA satellites (ESSA-3, -5, -7, -9) were in operation from December 1966 through November 1972. They were equipped with the Advanced Vidicon Camera System (AVCS). In addition, ITOS-1 and NOAA-1 were equipped with the AVCS and were operational from January 1970 to August 1971. Only visible images are available during this time period. Quality varies throughout the 1960s time period. From October 1972 through March 1978, data from the NOAA satellites (NOAA-2, -3, -4, -5) were acquired. They were equipped with a Scanning Radiometer (SR) with both visible and infrared (IR) bands, so IR observations are available for this time period as well as visible. These were organized as cross-track scan lines.

    Access & Use Information

    License: No license information was provided. If this work was prepared by an officer or employee of the United States government as part of that person's official duties it is considered a U.S. Government Work.

    Downloads & Resources

    Dates

    Metadata Date December 3, 2025
    Metadata Created Date December 12, 2025
    Metadata Updated Date December 12, 2025
    Reference Date(s) 2019 (publication)
    Frequency Of Update asNeeded

    Metadata Source

    Harvested from ncdc

    Other Data Resources

    Graphic Preview

    Calibrated visible satellite data (gnav) sample image

    Additional Metadata

    Resource Type Dataset
    Metadata Date December 3, 2025
    Metadata Created Date December 12, 2025
    Metadata Updated Date December 12, 2025
    Reference Date(s) 2019 (publication)
    Responsible Party NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (Point of Contact)
    Contact Email
    Guid gov.noaa.ncdc:C01577
    Access Constraints Cite as: Campbell, G. Garrett, (2019): NOAA Polar Orbiting Satellite (POES) Global Visible and Infrared Band Data from ESSA (1966 - 1972) and NOAA (1972 - 1978) Satellites [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. doi:10.7289/V5QV3JV6 [access date]., Distribution liability: NOAA and NCEI make no warranty, expressed or implied, regarding these data, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty. NOAA and NCEI cannot assume liability for any damages caused by any errors or omissions in these data. If appropriate, NCEI can only certify that the data it distributes are an authentic copy of the records that were accepted for inclusion in the NCEI archives., Use liability: NOAA and NCEI cannot provide any warranty as to the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of furnished data. Users assume responsibility to determine the usability of these data. The user is responsible for the results of any application of this data for other than its intended purpose.
    Bbox East Long 180.0
    Bbox North Lat 90.0
    Bbox South Lat -90.0
    Bbox West Long -180.0
    Coupled Resource
    Frequency Of Update asNeeded
    Graphic Preview Description Calibrated visible satellite data (gnav) sample image
    Graphic Preview File https://data.noaa.gov/docucomp/image/171aee99-6cb6-49d3-8eb1-15db970ace69
    Graphic Preview Type PNG
    Harvest Object Id f0c78ab2-2c03-4650-94db-9a7d34461a65
    Harvest Source Id 2cb3ef77-1683-4c2a-9119-dc65e50917c6
    Harvest Source Title ncdc
    Licence Gaps may exist in the data due to sensor/satellite failure, missing data, or poor quality results.
    Lineage Original satellite data were collected by ESSA (later NOAA) and sent to the National Climatic Data Center (now NCEI) for stewardship. NSIDC then scanned the original imagery from physical media stored at NCEI, then digitized and applied navigation to the files.
    Metadata Language eng; USA
    Metadata Type geospatial
    Old Spatial {"type": "Polygon", "coordinates": [[[-180.0, -90.0], [180.0, -90.0], [180.0, 90.0], [-180.0, 90.0], [-180.0, -90.0]]]}
    Progress
    Spatial Data Service Type
    Spatial Reference System
    Spatial Harvester True
    Temporal Extent Begin 1966-12-01
    Temporal Extent End 1978-03-16

    Didn't find what you're looking for? Suggest a dataset here.