Data coverage
The Sentinel-2 mission is part of the European Union Copernicus programme for Earth observations. Sentinel-2 consists of twin satellites, Sentinel-2A (launched 23 June 2015) and Sentinel-2B (launched 7 March 2017). The two satellites have the same orbit, but 180° apart for optimal coverage and data delivery. Their combined data is used in the Digital Earth Africa Sentinel-2 product. Together, they cover all Earth’s land surfaces, large islands, inland and coastal waters every 3-5 days. Sentinel-2 data is tiered by level of pre-processing. Level-0, Level-1A and Level-1B data contain raw data from the satellites, with little to no pre-processing. Level-1C data is surface reflectance measured at the top of the atmosphere. This is processed using the Sen2Cor algorithm to give Level-2A, the bottom-of-atmosphere reflectance (Obregón et al, 2019). Level-2A data is the most ideal for research activities as it allows further analysis without applying additional atmospheric corrections. Digital Earth Africa Sentinel-2 Level-2A Surface Reflectance Collection 1 is the Sentinel-2 product processed for enhanced calibration and consistent time series between Sentinel-2A and Sentinel-2B. Digital Earth Africa does not host any lower-level Sentinel-2 data. Note that this data is a subset of the Sentinel-2 COGs dataset.
Access & permitted use
Review the publisher’s documentation for availability, eligibility and permitted uses, including commercial analysis, model training and redistribution.
Access to Sentinel data is free, full and open for the broad Regional, National, European and International user community. View Terms and Conditions.
Need help sourcing data?
Tell us your required fields, population, geography and time period. We can review suitable sources and licensing options.
Request sourcing help