Alaska Satellite Facility - Distributed Active Archive Center

OPERA

Observational Products for End-Users from Remote Sensing Analysis Image showing earth with grid and OPERA logo

Observational Products for End-Users from Remote Sensing Analysis (OPERA)

 

The OPERA project at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory was created to address high-priority requests from the NASA Satellite Needs Working Group and its partners for products generated from space-borne synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and optical sensors. Three products were identified:

  • Near-global* Dynamic Surface Water Extent products
  • Near-global Surface Disturbance products
  • North America* Surface Displacement products

“Near-global” corresponds to all landmasses excluding Antarctica. “North America *” corresponds to the United States and U.S. Territories, Canada within 200 km of the U.S. border, and all mainland countries from the southern U.S. border up to and including Panama.

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Overview

sample OPERA RTC image

 

Level-3 SAR and Optical data products

Near-global Dynamic Surface Water eXtent (DSWx) product suite

  • Utilizes Sentinel-1 SAR/ NISAR (products available in a future release) and Harmonized Landsat-8 / Sentinel-2 optical data
  • Products available through the Physical Oceanography Distributed Active Archive Center (PO.DAAC)

Near-global Surface Disturbance (DIST) product suite

  • Utilizes Sentinel-1 SAR and Harmonized Landsat-8/9 and Sentinel-2 optical data
  • Products available through the Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center (LP DAAC)

North America Surface Displacement (DISP) product suite

  • Utilizes Sentinel-1 and NISAR Interferometric SAR data (products available in a future release)
  • Products will be available through the Alaska Satellite Facility Distributed Active Archive Center (ASF DAAC)

Level-2 SAR data products

  • Near-global land surface Radiometric Terrain Corrected (RTC) SAR backscatter product
  • Near-global land surface Radiometric Terrain Corrected (RTC) SAR backscatter static layers product
  • North America Coregistered Single-Look Complex (CSLC) product
  • North America Coregistered Single-Look Complex (CSLC) static layers product

All Level-2 OPERA data products are distributed by the ASF DAAC

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User Guides and Technical Documentation

CSLC-S1: Product Specification Document, Static Product Specification Guide, Sample Product, and Interactive Guides
CSLC-S1 Product Specification Document

The CSLC-S1 Product Specification document describes the specifications of the OPERA Level-2 Coregistered Single-Look Complex (CSLC) product that uses Sentinel-1 SLC products as the primary image-based input. Accordingly, this data product is referred to by the short name CSLC-S1.

 

CSLC-S1-STATIC Product Specification Document

The CSLC-S1-Static Product Specification document describes the specifications of the OPERA Level-2 Radiometric Terrain-Corrected SAR Backscatter from Sentinel-1 (CSLC-S1) Static Layers (CSLC-S1-STATIC) product. It is distributed separately from the CSLC-S1 products, and it is only produced once (or a limited amount of times) for CSLC-S1 products characterized by the same burst identification string, i.e., for all the Sentinel-1 bursts covering the same geographical area on the ground. The CSLC-S1-STATIC contains both data raster layers (e.g., geocoded geometry layers) and product metadata.

 

CSLC-S1 Product Calibration/Validation (CalVal) Database

OPERA_CSLC_Calval_Database.zip: This file contains the calibration/validation (CalVal) database for the OPERA CSLC-S1 product. The CalVal database is a zip file that contains:

    • Ancillary data products needed for validation, tables with CSLC-S1 product metadata (including links to the CSLC-S1 CalVal collections and static layers)
    • Validation reports detailing the results of the validation process,
    • A CalVal database reference document that details the contents of the database

This database is designed to be read and used by the OPERA CSLC CalVal GitHub repository to reproduce the validation process and results. Products can be downloaded by request.

 

CSLC_S1 Bursts

The burst database is an SQLite file generated by the OPERA ADT containing relevant information on the bursts acquired worldwide throughout the duration of the S1-A/B mission. Since the S1-A/B sensors perform systematic burst acquisitions, the burst geographical location on the ground is almost identical at each pass. Therefore, each burst can be identified by a unique alphanumeric string called a burst identification number or burst ID. The burst database includes the burst ID for all the bursts generated throughout the S1-A/B mission; each burst ID follows the same convention adopted by ESA in the generation of their burst map. The burst database includes other relevant processing information, such as the relative orbit number, the corner coordinates, and the projection system of the geographical grid, which generates each CSLC-S1 product.

Using the burst database while producing CSLC-S1 products guarantees that a time series of CSLC-S1 products characterized by the same burst ID shares the same geographical grid, i.e., they can be differenced pixel-wise. These products can be downloaded directly from an S3 bucket here.

The burst database is generated by the OPERA ADT and is available from the GitHub repository. The script inputs the ESA burst map (IW mode, in SpatiaLite format). The ESA burst map can be downloaded here.

 

Interactive Guides
  • Visualization Guide —  Illustrates how users can manipulate products in the open-source QGIS software
  • Jupyter Notebook Tutorials — Introductory guides written in a Jupyter Notebook environment that showcases select applications
      • Tutorial 1: How to generate interferograms (without having to download OPERA CSLC-S1 products locally). This example is for the Ridgecrest Earthquake, California, USA, from July 2019.
CSLC-NI: Product Specification Document, Static Product Specification Guide, Sample Product, and Interactive Guides

Note: NISAR is scheduled to be launched in 2025

RTC-S1: Product Specification Document, Static Product Specification Document, Sample Product, and Interactive Guides
RTC-S1 Product Specification Document

The RTC-S1 Product Specification document describes the specifications of the OPERA Level-2 Radiometric Terrain-Corrected (RTC) product that uses Sentinel-1 SLC data as the primary image-based input.

 

RTC-S1-STATIC Product Specification Document

The RTC-S1-Static Product Specification document describes the specifications of the OPERA Level-2 Radiometric Terrain-Corrected SAR Backscatter from Sentinel-1 (RTC-S1) Static Layers (RTC-S1-STATIC) product. The RTC-S1-STATIC product provides radar geometry layers, such as local incidence angle or incidence angle, that describe the Sentinel-1 acquisition geometry associated with the OPERA RTC-S1 products with the same burst ID.

 

RTC-S1 Product Calibration/Validation (CalVal) Database

OPERA_RTC_Calval_Database.zip: This file contains the calibration/validation (CalVal) database for the OPERA RTC-S1 product. The CalVal database is a zip file that contains:

    • Ancillary data products needed for validation
    • Tables with RTC-S1 product metadata (including links to the RTC-S1 CalVal collections and static layers)
    • Validation reports detailing the results of the validation process
    • A CalVal database reference document that details the contents of the database

This database is designed to be read and used by the OPERA RTC CalVal GitHub repository to reproduce the validation process and results. Products can be downloaded by request.

 

RTC-S1 Bursts

The SAS requires a burst database (SQLite file) for operations so that RTC-S1 products with the same bust IDs have the same map projection and geographic grid. The burst database is generated by the OPERA ADT and is available from the GitHub repository. Products can be downloaded directly from an S3 bucket here. The script inputs the ESA burst map (IWmode, in SpatiaLite format). The ESA burst map can be downloaded here.

 

Interactive Guides
DISP-S1: Product Specification Document, Static Product Specification Document, Sample Product, and Interactive Guides

Note: The DISP-S1 products will be available in 2024

DISP-NI: Product Specification Document, Static Product Specification Document, Sample Product, and Interactive Guides

Note: NISAR is scheduled to be launched in 2025

Sentinel-1 Level-2 Products

Level-2 Coregistered Single-Look Complex from Sentinel-1 (CSLC-S1)

The Coregistered Single-Look Complex (CSLC) product consists of SLC images that are precisely aligned or “coregistered” to a pre-defined UTM/Polar stereographic map projection system. The CSLC images contain both the amplitude and phase information of the complex radar return. The Level-2 CSLC product is derived from Sentinel-1 data and is provided in HDF5 format. The CSLC product also serves as the basis for the OPERA Displacement (DISP) product.

PropertyValue
Product NameLevel-2 Coregistered Single-Look Complex from Sentinel-1
Product Short NameL2_CSLC-S1
Satellite PlatformSentinel-1A and Sentinel-1B
Sensor (center frequency)C-Band SAR (5.405 GHz)
Temporal Coverage2014-present
Spatial CoverageUSA and U.S. Territories, Canada within 200 km of the U.S. border, and all mainland countries from the southern U.S. border down to and including Panama.
Repeat Period6-12 days
Acquisition ModeIW
Data SourceSentinel-1 SLC burst
Data ProjectionUTM/WGS84 map grid
Spatial Resolution10m × 5m (azimuth x range)
Product FormatHDF5
Version1.0
DOIhttps://doi.org/10.5067/SNWG/OPERA_L2_CSLC-S1_V1
Data ProviderOPERA Data System
Data DistributorASF DAAC
Download informationASF Data Discovery

 

Level-2 Coregistered Single-Look Complex from Sentinel-1 Static Layers (CSLC-S1-STATIC)

The CSLC-ST-S1 product serves as an ancillary product to the OPERA Level 2 Single Look Complex (CSLC-S1) products and is distributed separately from the CSLC-S1 products. It is only produced once (or a limited amount of times) for CSLC-S1 products characterized by the same burst identification string i.e., for all the S1-A/B bursts covering the same geographical area on the ground.

PropertyValue
Product NameLevel-2 Coregistered Single-Look Complex from Sentinel-1 Static Layers
Product Short NameL2_CSLC-S1-STATIC
Satellite PlatformSentinel-1A and Sentinel-1B
Sensor (center frequency)C-Band SAR (5.405 GHz)
Temporal Coverage2014-present
Spatial CoverageUSA and U.S Territories, Canada within 200 km of the U.S. border, and all mainland countries from the southern U.S. border down to and including Panama.
Repeat Period6-12 days
Acquisition ModeIW
Data SourceSentinel-1 SLC burst
Data ProjectionUTM/WGS84 map grid
DEMCopernicus GLO-30
Spatial Resolution10m × 5m (azimuth x range)
LayersEast (Range) LOS
North (Azimuth) LOS
Local Incidence Angle
Layover Shadow Mask
Product FormatHDF5
Version1.0
DOI10.5067/SNWG/OPERA_L2_CSLC-S1-STATIC_V1
Data ProviderOPERA Data System
Data DistributorASF DAAC
Download informationASF Data Discovery

 

Level-2 Radiometric Terrain-Corrected from Sentinel-1 (RTC-S1)

The Radiometric Terrain Corrected SAR Backscatter product consists of Sentinel-1 radar backscatter data normalized with respect to the topography. It is a Level-2 product that is projected onto a pre-defined UTM/Polar stereographic map projection system. The Copernicus Global 30 m (GLO-30) Digital Elevation Model (DEM) is the reference DEM used to correct for the impacts of topography and to geocode the product. The product is provided in a GeoTIFF file format.

PropertyValue
Product NameLevel-2 Radiometric Terrain-Corrected Backscatter from Sentinel-1
Product Short NameL2_RTC-S1
Satellite PlatformSentinel-1A
Sensor (center frequency)C-Band SAR (5.405 GHz)
Temporal CoverageOctober 2023-present
Spatial CoverageNear Global (all land masses excluding Antarctica)
Repeat Period12 days
Acquisition ModeIW
Data SourceSentinel-1 SLC burst
Data ProjectionUTM/ Polar stereographic map grid
DEMCopernicus GLO-30
Spatial Resolution30-meter
Product FormatCloud Optimized GeoTIFF (COG)
Version1.0
DOIhttps://doi.org/10.5067/SNWG/OPERA_L2_RTC-S1_V1
Data ProviderOPERA Data System
Data DistributorASF DAAC
Download informationASF Data Discovery

 

Level-2 Radiometric Terrain-Corrected SAR from Sentinel-1 Static Layers (RTC-S1-STATIC)

The Radiometric Terrain Corrected (RTC-S1) SAR Backscatter Static Layers product is a Level 2 product that contains static radar geometry layers associated with the RTC-S1 product.

PropertyValue
Product NameLevel-2 Radiometric Terrain-Corrected SAR from Sentinel-1 Static Layers
Product Short NameRTC-S1-STATIC
Satellite PlatformSentinel-1A
Sensor (center frequency)C-Band SAR (5.405 GHz)
Temporal CoverageOctober 2023-present
Spatial CoverageNear Global (all land masses excluding Antarctica)
Repeat Period6-12 days
Acquisition ModeIW
Data SourceSentinel-1 SLC burst
Data ProjectionUTM/ Polar stereographic map grid
DEMCopernicus GLO-30
Spatial Resolution30-meter
LayersIncidence angle
Local-incidence angle
No. of looks
Mask layer
RTC Area Normalization Factor (ANF) gamma0 to beta0
RTC Area Normalization Factor (ANF) gamma0 to sigma0
Product FormatCloud Optimized GeoTIFF (COG)
Version1.0
DOIhttps://doi.org/10.5067/SNWG/OPERA_L2_RTC-S1-STATIC_V1
Data ProviderOPERA Data System
Data DistributorASF DAAC
Download informationASF Data Discovery

Citation Information

ProductFormat
CSLC-S1OPERA. 2023. OPERA Level-2 Coregistered Single-Look Complex from Sentinel-1. Fairbanks, Alaska USA. NASA Alaska Satellite Facility Distributed Active Archive Center. doi: https://doi.org/10.5067/SNWG/OPERA_L2_CSLC-S1_V1 [Date Accessed].
CSLC-S1 Static LayersOPERA. 2023. OPERA Level-2 Coregistered Single-Look Complex Static Layers from Sentinel-1. Fairbanks, Alaska USA. NASA Alaska Satellite Facility Distributed Active Archive Center. doi: https://doi.org/10.5067/SNWG/OPERA_L2_CSLC-S1-STATIC_V1 [Date Accessed].
RTC-S1OPERA. 2023. OPERA Level-2 Radiometric Terrain Corrected from Sentinel-1. Fairbanks, Alaska USA. NASA Alaska Satellite Facility Distributed Active Archive Center. doi: https://doi.org/10.5067/SNWG/OPERA_L2_RTC-S1_V1 [Date Accessed].
RTC-S1 Static LayersOPERA. 2023. OPERA Level-2 Radiometric Terrain Corrected Static Layers from Sentinel-1. Fairbanks, Alaska USA. NASA Alaska Satellite Facility Distributed Active Archive Center. doi: https://doi.org/10.5067/SNWG/OPERA_L2_RTC-S1-STATIC_V1 [Date Accessed].

Discover OPERA products

The OPERA L-3 North America Land Surface Displacement product and L-2 CSLC and RTC products can be accessed at ASF DAAC

Data Discovery Tools

Data Discovery ToolLink
ASF Vertex Data SearchVertex
Python Search Moduleasf_search
ASF Search APIASF Search API
NASA Earthdata SearchEarthdata Search
Learn more about ASF Data Discovery Services

 


 

OPERA products can also be directly accessed from AWS

Note: Access is available IN REGION only

DatasetAWS RegionBucket/Object Prefix – PRODUCTSBucket/Object Prefix – BROWSEAuthenticationDocumentation
CSLCUS-WEST-2asf-cumulus-prod-opera-products/OPERA_L2_CSLC-S1/asf-cumulus-prod-opera-browse/OPERA_L2_CSLC-S1/Get AWS S3 CredentialsREADME file
CSLC Static LayersUS-WEST-2asf-cumulus-prod-opera-products/OPERA_L2_CSLC-S1_STATIC/N/AGet AWS S3 CredentialsREADME file
RTCUS-WEST-2asf-cumulus-prod-opera-products/OPERA_L2_RTC-S1/asf-cumulus-prod-opera-browse/OPERA_L2_RTC-S1/Get AWS S3 CredentialsREADME file
RTC Static LayersUS-WEST-2asf-cumulus-prod-opera-products/OPERA_L2_RTC-S1_STATIC/N/AGet AWS S3 CredentialsREADME file
Surface Displacement (DISP)US-WEST-2TBDTBDTBDTBD