The AVHRR (Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer) is a broad-band, four- or five-channel (depending on the model) scanner, sensing in the visible, near-infrared, and thermal-infrared (TIR) portions of the electromagnetic spectrum. This sensor is carried on NOAA's Polar Orbiting Environmental Satellites (POES), beginning with a 4-channel AVHRR on TIROS-N in 1978. AVHRR data are available in two formats: Local Area Coverage (LAC) and Global Area Coverage (GAC). LAC data have a spatial resolution of 1.1 km at nadir from a 833-km orbit with a 2399-km swath. GAC data are 1.1-by-4 km.
Starting with NOAA-15 (K), the AVHRR was a 6-channel instrument (AVHRR/3) including a mid-IR channel and a different wavelength range for the near-IR channel as well.
| Band | Wavelength Region (µm) | Resolution (km) |
| 1 | 0.58-0.68 (red) | 1.1 |
| 2 | 0.725-1.10 (near-IR) | 1.1 |
| 3 | 3.55-3.93 (high-temp TIR) | 1.1 |
| 4 | 10.3-11.3 (TIR) | 1.1 |
| 5 | 11.5-12.5 (TIR) | 1.1 |
| Band | Wavelength Region (µm) | Resolution (km) |
| 1 | 0.58-0.68 (red) | 1.1 |
| 2 | 0.73-0.98 (near-IR) | 1.1 |
| 3a | 1.58-1.63 (mid-IR) | 1.1 |
| 3b | 3.54-3.87 (high-temp TIR) | 1.1 |
| 4 | 10.3-11.3 (TIR) | 1.1 |
| 5 | 11.5-12.4 (TIR) | 1.1 |
Back to the
CHAART Sensor Evaluation page