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There are several freely-available map libraries available to help in building your own interface to explore NASA's Earth imagery via the Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS).
Please see our "GIBS Web Examples" GitHub area for code samples and live demos of using popular web mapping libraries (e.g., OpenLayers, Cesium, Mapbox GL) with GIBS.
World Wind is a now-deprecated virtual globe developed by NASA that runs in Java. It can load GIBS imagery through either the KML interface or the TWMS interface.
NASA World Wind 1.3+
To run the World Wind client with GIBS KML capabilities, load the "KML Viewer" demo application from the standalone client. To load a specific layer, select File | Open URL... and enter a URL for the layer in this format: https://<url to kmlgen.cgi>?layers=<layername>&time=<time> for example, https://gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov/twms/epsg4326/best/kmlgen.cgi?layers=MODIS_Terra_CorrectedReflectance_TrueColor&time=2012-06-21
To enable time adjustment on a particular layer, use the following URL parameter: time=R10/<date>/P1D for example, https://gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov/twms/epsg4326/best/kmlgen.cgi?layers=MODIS_Terra_CorrectedReflectance_TrueColor&time=R10/2012-05-26/P1D
Limitations: The name of the layer has to be known prior to entering the URL. The list of available layers can be found here.
To run the World Wind client with TWMS capabilities, load the WMS Layer Manager demo application from either the standalone client or the online demo. In the layers menu, add the TWMS endpoint. This will load the list of layers available from TWMS and selecting a layer will allow it to be shown on the globe.
Limitations: World Wind will continue to zoom and try to load images even if they're beyond the depth of the highest resolution tile. When this happens, the images will go blank. In addition, this interface does not allow the selection of variables such as time.
The Geospatial Data Abstraction Library (GDAL) WMS driver supports several internal 'minidrivers' that allow access to different web mapping services. Each of these services may support a different set of options in the Service block. Documentation for these minidrivers can be found here on the GDAL website. Two of these minidrivers in particular can be used by users to download GIBS imagery programmatically. They are the Tile Map Specification (TMS) and the OnEarth Tiled WMS (TiledWMS) minidrivers. Examples for both of these minidrivers will be included below.
Requirements
GDAL version 1.9.1 or greater with cURL support enabled. To check if cURL is enabled for GDAL, type "gdalinfo --format WMS". If cURL is enabled you will see information about the WMS format, if not, you will get an error message and you will need to reconfigure GDAL to support cURL.
Create a local service description XML file and invoke gdal_translate. In this example, GIBS_Aqua_MODIS_true.xml is used to generate a true color JPEG image from Aqua MODIS of a smoke plume from western fires over the central United States. The contents of GIBS_Aqua_MODIS_true.xml would be:
<GDAL_WMS> <Service name="TMS"> <ServerUrl>https://gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov/wmts/epsg4326/best/MODIS_Aqua_CorrectedReflectance_TrueColor/default/2013-08-21/250m/${z}/${y}/${x}.jpg</ServerUrl> </Service> <DataWindow> <UpperLeftX>-180.0</UpperLeftX> <UpperLeftY>90</UpperLeftY> <LowerRightX>396.0</LowerRightX> <LowerRightY>-198</LowerRightY> <TileLevel>8</TileLevel> <TileCountX>2</TileCountX> <TileCountY>1</TileCountY> <YOrigin>top</YOrigin> </DataWindow> <Projection>EPSG:4326</Projection> <BlockSizeX>512</BlockSizeX> <BlockSizeY>512</BlockSizeY> <BandsCount>3</BandsCount> </GDAL_WMS>
gdal_translate -of GTiff -outsize 1200 1000 -projwin -105 42 -93 32 GIBS_Aqua_MODIS_true.xml GreatPlainsSmoke1.tif gdal_translate -of JPEG GreatPlainsSmoke1.tif GreatPlainsSmoke1.jpg
In very limited testing, our experience has been that better image quality is obtained by using the GeoTIFF output format from the GDAL WMS, then converting this to other formats, if desired, using a second gdal_translate command, or other programs such as ImageMagick convert.
Invoke gdal_translate with the content of the local service description XML file embedded into the command. This approach is useful for automated scripting to download various layers, dates, etc. To generate the same image as above:
gdal_translate -of GTiff -outsize 1200 1000 -projwin -105 42 -93 32 '<GDAL_WMS><Service name="TMS"><ServerUrl>https://gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov/wmts/epsg4326/best/MODIS_Aqua_CorrectedReflectance_TrueColor/default/2013-08-21/250m/${z}/${y}/${x}.jpg</ServerUrl></Service><DataWindow><UpperLeftX>-180.0</UpperLeftX><UpperLeftY>90</UpperLeftY><LowerRightX>396.0</LowerRightX><LowerRightY>-198</LowerRightY><TileLevel>8</TileLevel><TileCountX>2</TileCountX><TileCountY>1</TileCountY><YOrigin>top</YOrigin></DataWindow><Projection>EPSG:4326</Projection><BlockSizeX>512</BlockSizeX><BlockSizeY>512</BlockSizeY><BandsCount>3</BandsCount></GDAL_WMS>' GreatPlainsSmoke2.tif gdal_translate -of JPEG GreatPlainsSmoke2.tif GreatPlainsSmoke2.jpg
For both options, the information needed to create the local service description XML can be found in the large table on the GIBS Available Imagery Products page.
Items that may need to be changed include:
1) <ServerUrl>https://gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov/wmts/epsgcode/best/layer_name/default/date/resolution/${z}/${y}/${x}.format</ServerUrl>
layer_name - use "Layer Name on Server" from Products page. Note that only one layer can be retrieved per gdal_translate call.
date - use the desired date in YYYY-MM-DD format
epsgcode - use "epsg" followed by the appropriate EPSG code from Footnote 4 on the GIBS Available Imagery Products page
resolution - use the "Resolution" in the format ####m from the "Imagery Resolution" column on the GIBS Available Imagery Products page, or GoogleMapsCompatible_Level# resolution from table below
format - use jpg or png extension based on the "Format"
2) Bounding box - use -180.0, 90, 396.0, -198 for Geographic projection and -4194304, 4194304, 4194304, -4194304 for the Polar projections. This is the bounding box of the topmost tile, which matches the bounding box of the actual imagery for Polar but not for Geographic.
3) <TileLevel> - select from the table below based on "Resolution" and "Projection". Note that the TileLevel in the table below is the maximum for that resolution. You can specify a lower value of TileLevel to force GDAL to use coarser resolution input tiles. This can be used to speed up projection, for example during development and testing.
Resolution | TileLevel (Geographic) | TileLevel (Polar) | Resolution (Web Mercator) | TileLevel (Web Mercator) |
---|---|---|---|---|
2km | 5 | 2 | GoogleMapsCompatible_Level6 | 6 |
1km | 6 | 3 | GoogleMapsCompatible_Level7 | 7 |
500m | 7 | 4 | GoogleMapsCompatible_Level8 | 8 |
250m | 8 | 5 | GoogleMapsCompatible_Level9 | 9 |
125m | 9 | - | GoogleMapsCompatible_Level10 | 10 |
62.5m | 10 | - | GoogleMapsCompatible_Level11 | 11 |
31.25m | 11 | - | GoogleMapsCompatible_Level12 | 12 |
15.625m | 12 | - | GoogleMapsCompatible_Level13 | 13 |
4) <TileCountX><TileCountY> - use 2, 1 for Geographic projection and 2, 2 for Polar projections
5) <Projection> - use the appropriate EPSG code from Footnote 4 on the GIBS Available Imagery Products page.
6) <Bands> - use 3 for .jpg (except use 1 for ASTER_GDEM_Greyscale_Shaded_Relief) and 4 for .png
Note that the values for <YOrigin>, <BlockSizeX>, and <BlockSizeY> are constant for all GIBS layers.
More information on GDAL_WMS can be found here (note the "TMS" section).
The TiledWMS GDAL minidriver relies on a simplified set of XML configuration from the user, pulling all other information from the TWMS WMS_Tile_Service document at runtime. The following example requests the same image as was requested in Sample Execution #1, but you will notice how much simpler the XML configuration is. The primary difference is that requests through TWMS utilize a TiledGroupName value instead of the WMTS Identifier utilized by WMTS requests. The TiledGroupName can be generated by replacing all underscores in a WMTS layer's Identifier with spaces and appending " tileset". For example, a WMTS Layer Identifier of SMAP_L1_Passive_Faraday_Rotation_Aft" becomes the TWMS TiledGroupName "SMAP L1 Passive Faraday Rotation Aft tileset".
<GDAL_WMS> <Service name="TiledWMS"> <ServerUrl>https://gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov/twms/epsg4326/best/twms.cgi?</ServerUrl> <TiledGroupName>MODIS Aqua CorrectedReflectance TrueColor tileset</TiledGroupName> <Change key="${time}">2013-08-21</Change> </Service> </GDAL_WMS>
gdal_translate -of GTiff -outsize 1200 1000 -projwin -105 42 -93 32 GIBS_Aqua_MODIS_true.xml GreatPlainsSmoke1.tif gdal_translate -of JPEG GreatPlainsSmoke1.tif GreatPlainsSmoke1.jpg
This example invokes gdal_translate with the content of the TileWMS local service description XML file embedded as a command line argument. This approach is useful for automated scripting to download various layers, dates, etc. To generate the same image as above, run the following:
gdal_translate -of GTiff -outsize 1200 1000 -projwin -105 42 -93 32 '<GDAL_WMS><Service name="TiledWMS"><ServerUrl>https://gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov/twms/epsg4326/best/twms.cgi?</ServerUrl><TiledGroupName>MODIS Aqua CorrectedReflectance TrueColor tileset</TiledGroupName><Change key="${time}">2013-08-21</Change></Service></GDAL_WMS>' GreatPlainsSmoke2.tif gdal_translate -of JPEG GreatPlainsSmoke2.tif GreatPlainsSmoke2.jpg
In this example, GIBS_OMI_AI.xml is used to generate a transparent PNG image from the OMI Aerosol Index over the same region as the first two examples. The "Layer Name on Server" and EPSG/resolution in <ServerURL>, the <TileLevel>, and the <BandsCount> have changed from the first examples. The contents of GIBS_OMI_AI.xml would be:
<GDAL_WMS> <Service name="TMS"> <ServerUrl>https://gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov/wmts/epsg4326/best/OMI_Aerosol_Index/default/2013-08-21/2km/${z}/${y}/${x}.png</ServerUrl> </Service> <DataWindow> <UpperLeftX>-180.0</UpperLeftX> <UpperLeftY>90</UpperLeftY> <LowerRightX>396.0</LowerRightX> <LowerRightY>-198</LowerRightY> <TileLevel>5</TileLevel> <TileCountX>2</TileCountX> <TileCountY>1</TileCountY> <YOrigin>top</YOrigin> </DataWindow> <Projection>EPSG:4326</Projection> <BlockSizeX>512</BlockSizeX> <BlockSizeY>512</BlockSizeY> <BandsCount>4</BandsCount> </GDAL_WMS>
gdal_translate -of GTiff -outsize 1200 1000 -projwin -105 42 -93 32 GIBS_OMI_AI.xml GreatPlainsSmokeAI.tif gdal_translate -of PNG GreatPlainsSmokeAI.tif GreatPlainsSmokeAI.png
In this example, GIBS_Terra_MODIS_Arctic.xml is used to generate a true color JPEG image from Terra MODIS of a phytoplankton bloom in the Barents Sea. The "Layer Name on Server" and EPSG/resolution in <Serverurl>, the <DataWindow> elements, and the <Projection> have changed from the first examples. The contents of GIBS_Terra_MODIS_Arctic.xml would be:
<GDAL_WMS> <Service name="TMS"> <ServerUrl>https://gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov/wmts/epsg3413/best/MODIS_Terra_CorrectedReflectance_TrueColor/default/2013-08-01/250m/${z}/${y}/${x}.jpg</ServerUrl> </Service> <DataWindow> <UpperLeftX>-4194304</UpperLeftX> <UpperLeftY>4194304</UpperLeftY> <LowerRightX>4194304</LowerRightX> <LowerRightY>-4194304</LowerRightY> <TileLevel>5</TileLevel> <TileCountX>2</TileCountX> <TileCountY>2</TileCountY> <YOrigin>top</YOrigin> </DataWindow> <Projection>EPSG:3413</Projection> <BlockSizeX>512</BlockSizeX> <BlockSizeY>512</BlockSizeY> <BandsCount>3</BandsCount> </GDAL_WMS>
GeoTIFF files created by GDAL using the default tags for the GIBS polar projections do not work correctly in some GIS programs. So we recommend specifying the output projection in PROJ4 format:
gdal_translate -of GTiff -outsize 980 940 -a_srs "+proj=stere +lat_0=90 +lat_ts=70 +lon_0=-45 +k=1 +x_0=0 +y_0=0 +ellps=WGS84 +datum=WGS84 +units=m +no_defs" -projwin 1520000 240000 2500000 -700000 GIBS_Terra_MODIS_Arctic.xml BarentsSea.tif gdal_translate -of JPEG BarentsSea.tif BarentsSea.jpg
The projection string for the GIBS Antarctic projection is "+proj=stere +lat_0=-90 +lat_ts=-71 +lon_0=0 +k=1 +x_0=0 +y_0=0 +ellps=WGS84 +datum=WGS84 +units=m +no_defs". Here are the links for the Arctic or Antarctic PROJ4 definitions. Some other workarounds are:
1) Use a ".aux.xml" file with the ".tif" file. Download the sample Arctic or Antarctic XML file and rename it to match the GeoTIFF file.
gdal_translate -of GTiff -outsize 980 940 -projwin 1520000 240000 2500000 -700000 GIBS_Terra_MODIS_Arctic.xml BarentsSea.tif "copy" GIBS_Arctic_3413.tif.aux.xml "to" BarentsSea.tif.aux.xml gdal_translate -of JPEG BarentsSea.tif BarentsSea.jpg
2) Use JPEG format instead. This will create a .jpg.aux.xml file in addition to the .jpg file.
gdal_translate -of JPEG -outsize 980 940 -projwin 1520000 240000 2500000 -700000 GIBS_Terra_MODIS_Arctic.xml BarentsSea.jpg
In this example, GIBS_Aqua_MODIS_Arctic.xml is used to generate a true color JPEG image from Aqua MODIS of the Beaufort Sea reprojected to have 145W down. The "Layer Name on Server" and EPSG/resolution in <Serverurl>, the <DataWindow> elements, and the <Projection> have changed from the first examples. The contents of GIBS_Aqua_MODIS_Arctic.xml would be:
<GDAL_WMS> <Service name="TMS"> <ServerUrl>https://gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov/wmts/epsg3413/best/MODIS_Aqua_CorrectedReflectance_TrueColor/default/2013-06-20/250m/${z}/${y}/${x}.jpg</ServerUrl> </Service> <DataWindow> <UpperLeftX>-4194304</UpperLeftX> <UpperLeftY>4194304</UpperLeftY> <LowerRightX>4194304</LowerRightX> <LowerRightY>-4194304</LowerRightY> <TileLevel>5</TileLevel> <TileCountX>2</TileCountX> <TileCountY>2</TileCountY> <YOrigin>top</YOrigin> </DataWindow> <Projection>EPSG:3413</Projection> <BlockSizeX>512</BlockSizeX> <BlockSizeY>512</BlockSizeY> <BandsCount>3</BandsCount> </GDAL_WMS>
gdalwarp -t_srs '+proj=stere +lat_0=90 +lat_ts=70 +lon_0=-145 +k=1 +x_0=0 +y_0=0 +datum=WGS84 +units=m +no_defs' -te -1600000 -2500000 1200000 -400000 -tr 1000 1000 GIBS_Aqua_MODIS_Arctic.xml Beaufort_neg145down_1km.tif gdal_translate -of JPEG Beaufort_neg145down_1km.tif Beaufort_neg145down_1km.jpg
Only a subset of layers are available from GIBS in the polar projections. This is an example of how to project a geographic layer into a polar projection. The contents of GIBS_Terra_Cloud_Fraction.xml would be:
<GDAL_WMS> <Service name="TMS"> <ServerUrl>https://gibs.earthdata.nasa.gov/wmts/epsg4326/best/MODIS_Terra_Cloud_Fraction_Day/default/2017-05-16/2km/${z}/${y}/${x}.png</ServerUrl> </Service> <DataWindow> <UpperLeftX>-180.0</UpperLeftX> <UpperLeftY>90</UpperLeftY> <LowerRightX>396.0</LowerRightX> <LowerRightY>-198</LowerRightY> <TileLevel>5</TileLevel> <TileCountX>2</TileCountX> <TileCountY>1</TileCountY> <YOrigin>top</YOrigin> </DataWindow> <Projection>EPSG:4326</Projection> <BlockSizeX>512</BlockSizeX> <BlockSizeY>512</BlockSizeY> <BandsCount>4</BandsCount> <ZeroBlockHttpCodes>204,404,400</ZeroBlockHttpCodes> </GDAL_WMS>
gdalwarp -wo SOURCE_EXTRA=100 -wo SAMPLE_GRID=YES -of GTiff -t_srs "+proj=stere +lat_0=90 +lat_ts=70 +lon_0=-45 +k=1 +x_0=0 +y_0=0 +ellps=WGS84 +datum=WGS84 +units=m +no_defs" -ts 4096 4096 -te -4194304 -4194304 4194304 4194304 GIBS_Terra_Cloud_Fraction.xml Terra_Cloud_Fraction_Arctic.tif
The "-wo SOURCE_EXTRA=100 -wo SAMPLE_GRID=YES" arguments are needed to ensure that the output region is completely filled. The "-wo SOURCE_EXTRA=100" caused GDAL to request tiles outside of input bounding region. Normally GDAL would halt when it receives these errors so the <ZeroBlockHttpCodes> includes the 400 error to allow GDAL to continue. Note that this command may take a long time to complete, especially at higher input and output resolutions.
Geographic Information System (GIS) and Google Earth users: go here for instructions.