Bands, Formats, Scaling, and Metadata

This page is the canonical technical reference for band definitions, output encoding, scaling, and metadata.

Data Encoding

• Data types: UINT8 or INT16
• INT16 NODATA: -32768 (UINT8 NODATA: 0)
• Precomputed index scaling: divide by 32767 (maps [-32767, 32767] to [-1, 1])

Spectral Reflectance Scaling

For spectral bands, decode reflectance from INT16 values based on request settings:

Request mode	Formula
Level=1 or Level=2, Harmonize=true (default behavior)	reflectance = DN / 10000
Level=1 or Level=2, Harmonize=false (for models that support non-harmonized output)	reflectance = (DN - 1000) / 10000 for Sentinel-2 PB04+ style offset data
Metadata-driven (most robust general form)	reflectance = (DN + ADD_OFFSET) / QUANTIFICATION_VALUE

Recommended workflow for maximum reuse

When your pipeline supports it, prefer downloading Level=1 with Harmonize=false.

This gives you the most reusable source representation from one download:

• Derive Level-2 style outputs later in your own processing pipeline.
• Apply harmonization later when needed for specific downstream models or time-series alignment.
• Avoid re-downloading the same date/area in multiple variants.

If you use this mode, decode spectral reflectance with the non-harmonized formula in the table ((DN - 1000) / 10000 for Sentinel-2 PB04+ style offset data), and keep the same settings consistently across a time series.

Canonical Sentinel-2 Band Set

Use this as the canonical spectral band reference across models. Band availability depends on model and processing level.

Band Name	Band ID	Native Resolution (m)	Center Wavelength (nm)	Stratus (BOA)	Nimbus (TOA)	Nimbus (BOA)
Coastal aerosol	B1	60	443	No	Yes	Yes
Blue	B2	10	490	Yes	Yes	Yes
Green	B3	10	560	Yes	Yes	Yes
Red	B4	10	665	Yes	Yes	Yes
Red edge 1	B5	20	705	Yes	Yes	Yes
Red edge 2	B6	20	740	Yes	Yes	Yes
Red edge 3	B7	20	783	Yes	Yes	Yes
Near infrared	B8	10	842	Yes	Yes	Yes
Narrow near infrared	B8A	20	865	Yes	Yes	Yes
Water vapour	B9	60	945	No	Yes	Yes
Cirrus	B10	60	1375	No	Yes	No
Shortwave infrared 1	B11	20	1610	Yes	Yes	Yes
Shortwave infrared 2	B12	20	2190	Yes	Yes	Yes

Stratus models currently supports 10 bands only: B2, B3, B4, B5, B6, B7, B8, B8A, B11, B12.

For model-level details, see Data product overview and Models: Stratus and Nimbus.

GeoTIFF Metadata Tags

• IMAGE_DATE: image date (yyyymmdd)
• MODEL_VERSION: model version used
• IMAGE_VERSION: tile version indicator
• CONSTELLATIONS: constellations used for generation

When a request overlaps multiple tiles, IMAGE_VERSION can contain multiple comma-separated values in internal tile order.

Usage Guidance

• Prefer explicit bandnames in API requests to control output content/order and keep payloads predictable.
• Choose INT16 for quantitative analysis; use UINT8 for visualization/quicklook outputs where reduced precision is acceptable.
• Keep request settings stable across a time-series: Level, Harmonize, Model, SatelliteConstellations, Bandnames, Resolution, and EpsgProjection.
• Use UTM EPSG codes (326xx/327xx) for quality-critical workflows, and keep the same target EPSG across dates for temporal comparability.
• Set PixelSelectionMode intentionally: contained for strict AOI-only statistics; intersect when edge coverage is preferred.
• For precomputed indices, apply the 32767 scaling documented above. For custom indices, compute from correctly decoded reflectance bands, not raw DN.
• Preserve GeoTIFF provenance tags (IMAGE_DATE, MODEL_VERSION, IMAGE_VERSION, CONSTELLATIONS) in downstream files/tables for auditability and reproducibility.
• For external sharing/publication workflows, use provenance metadata plus order/output instructions to apply required source attribution notices. See Source attribution and external use.