FAQs

1. Where can I find scientific information on the LSA-SAF products?

Scientific information on each product can be found in the corresponding product page which is accessible through the "Data/Catalogue" page.

2. Where can I find information on how LSA-SAF products are derived?

You can read about LSA-SAF products generation in the Algorithm Theoretical Basis Documents.

1.  How do I query for specific LSA-SAF products?
 
 

Go to our "Data/Catalogue" page to query specific products.
 
2.  How can I get LSA-SAF products in Near Real Time?
  Please refer to the website top menu under "Data/Near Real Time" to find information on how to get the products in near-real time.
   
3.  How do I have access to archived LSA-SAF products?
 
 

You can follow the link in the top menu Data/Archived Products. As alternative you can follow the Download link in Data/Catalogue to be redirected to the Archived Products page.
4.  I'm on the product download page, what shall I do?
 

Please note that by default the Product Family (in the top of the page) is set to: 

 MSG/SEVIRI based products

Yet, you may need to change to another option, in case that you are interested in a different set of products. In this case you need to select the appropriate option and click the Change System button.

Then, use the Product drop-down menu to select the desired product. Select the Time Range and click Add Product. Once you have selected all desired products, click Send Request. You will receive a confirmation e-mail.
 
1.  What are LSA-SAF Data Records?
  LSA SAF Data Records correspond to LSA SAF products reprocessed with the best version of its equivalent NRT products. Currently these data records cover the period 2004-2015.
   
2.  Are Data Records (Reprocessed LSA-SAF data for the period 2004-2015) available for all LSA SAF products?
  The LSA SAF products that are currently available as Data Records can be conferred in the Products Catalogue. The reprocessing of other products is yet to be completed.
   
3.  How can I have access to LSA-SAF Data Records?
 

After logging in and clicking on "Data/Catalogue", choose the Data Record of a product you are interested in (MLST-R, for example) and click the Download Button. You will be redirected to the Product Download page and from there you can customize your Data Record request.
   

1. I can't open the products because they have a .bz2 extension. What should I do?

All products are compressed, to save storage space and network bandwidth. To decompress them you should use the bzip2 application available here.

2. How can I open and visualize LSA-SAF products in my computer?

To open our products you can use HDF Viewer and/or Panoply.

3. LSA-SAF EPS Products are hard to decode with HDF Viewer and Panoply. Is there an alternative to these two?

Yes. The European Space Agency has developed SNAP and we recommend it to open EPS products. Tutorials are available here.

4. I don't know how to determine the latitude and longitude for each pixel in the LSA-SAF images. 

The latitudes and longitudes are specified in HDF5 auxiliary files, which can be found at the "User Support/Auxiliary Data". Furthermore, you can use the MSG Geolocation Routines available at "User Support/Auxiliary Tools".

5. When does the MSG satellite start doing a full-disk scan of our planet?

A full-disk scan starts at the designated timeslot of a product. Timeslots vary between LSASAF products. 
For example, the temporal frequency for Land Surface Temperature production is of 15 minutes, whilst Daily Surface Albedo has a temporal frequency of 1 day.

6. What is the acquisiton time for each MSG satellite full-disk scan?

The acquisition time for the satellite to do a full-disk scan is of 12 minutes.

7. Can I get precise time information for when the satellite scanned a particular region of our planet?

In case you need this information, please contact the LSASAF Helpdesk.

1.  Why does the following message appear: "You have no access to the contents of this page"?

For accessing private pages, you must be registered and logged in on the LSA-SAF web site.

2. I want to change my password, how can I do it?

Please login, click in "User Profile" link, insert your old password in "Password" text field, insert your new password in "New Password" text field, insert it again in "Confirmation" text field and submit your changes by clicking "Proceed" button.

3. How do I change my user details?

Please login, click on the "User Profile" link, change your details and submit your changes by clicking the "Proceed" button.

4. How can I report a problem?

Select in the "User Support" drop-down menu the "Helpdesk" submenu. Fill in the "Subject" and the "Description" fields, and press the "Send Report" button.

1. How can I contact LSA-SAF directly?

Please submit your messages to helpdesk.landsaf@ipma.pt.

If you want to reach us by phone, dial the number +351 218447124.