How do you access Night lights VIIRS data?

Night lights VIIRS is labeled “Open download” on this guide. Open the access portal or documentation links on the record for the current host process—do not assume open download if registration or a DUA is required.

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VIIRS nightlights

india-district-nightlights-viirs — district night-lights panel

Name: india-district-nightlights-viirs — district night-lights panel
Creator: yashveeeeeeer

District night-lights panels are used as economic-activity proxies from VIIRS radiance.

Open downloadGitHub repoLargeGood starting dataset

remote sensing macroeconomy

Host / institution

GitHub · yashveeeeeeer

Geography

India, district

Time coverage

District panel (~8,333 rows described)

Update frequency

Updated Mar 2026

What this is best for

District night-lights panel for urbanization and economic proxies

Main limitations

MIT for code; NOAA/DataMeet upstream terms for inputs

Quick answers

Short research-facing answers derived from this catalog record.

What is Night lights VIIRS used for?: District night-lights panel for urbanization and economic proxies
How do you access Night lights VIIRS data?: Night lights VIIRS is labeled “Open download” on this guide. Open the access portal or documentation links on the record for the current host process—do not assume open download if registration or a DUA is required.
What geography and time does Night lights VIIRS cover?: Geography: India, district. Time coverage: District panel (~8,333 rows described).
What are the main limitations of Night lights VIIRS?: MIT for code; NOAA/DataMeet upstream terms for inputs

Guides for using this data

Official portals, user guides, codebooks, and tutorials for access and analysis.

2 links

Variables16

Live-fetched raw.githubusercontent.com (2026-07-09): # India District-Wise Nighttime Lights Database (VIIRS, 2012-2024) **A ready-to. Representative fields for the page table — verify the full dictionary on the official site.

Sourced from live host documentation

Open official dictionary

Name / code	Description	Group
district_id	Census 2011 district code	Schema
year	Year (2012-2024)	Schema
mean	Mean nightlight radiance (nW/cm²/sr)	Schema
median	Median nightlight radiance	Schema
sum	Total nightlight radiance (proxy for total economic activity)	Schema
std	Standard deviation of radiance	Schema
valid_pixel_count	Number of valid satellite pixels covering the district	Schema
log1p_mean	log(1 + mean) -- log-transformed mean for econometric use	Schema
log1p_median	log(1 + median) -- log-transformed median	Schema
Setting	Default	Schema
nightlights.years.start	2012	Schema
nightlights.years.end	2024	Schema
nightlights.viirs.ee_scale	1000	Schema
nightlights.viirs.ee_project	--	Schema
processing.metrics	mean, median, sum, std, min, max	Schema
Source	What	Schema

Formats

CSV panel · year-wise GeoJSON

Technical tags

csvgeojsonpipelinegithub

Example uses

Urban growth and economic proxy research

Research and articles using this data

Verified examples that analyze, reuse, introduce, or visualize this dataset. Search matches without evidence are not published here.

3 verified sources

Scholarly works3

Journal articleAnalyzes data
VIIRS Nighttime Lights in the Estimation of Cross-Sectional and Time-Series GDP
Xi Chen, William D. Nordhaus · Remote Sensing · 2019
Analyzes Night lights VIIRS data in the context of: "VIIRS Nighttime Lights in the Estimation of Cross-Sectional and Time-Series GDP".
Conference paperAnalyzes data
Mapping Regional Economic Development in India Using VIIRS Nighttime Lights and Machine Learning
Hrishikesh Patil, Vishal Gupta, Aditya Bapat · et al. · 2026 International Conference on Emerging Smart Computing and Informatics (ESCI) · 2026
Analyzes Night lights VIIRS data in the context of: "Mapping Regional Economic Development in India Using VIIRS Nighttime Lights and Machine Learning".
Working paperAnalyzes data
Exploring the relation between NPP-VIIRS Nighttime Lights and Carbon Footprint, Population Growth, and Energy Consumption in the UAE
Fahim Abdul Gafoor, Chung Suk Cho, Maryam R. Al Shehhi · 2023
Analyzes Night lights VIIRS data in the context of: "Exploring the relation between NPP-VIIRS Nighttime Lights and Carbon Footprint, Population Growth, and Energy Consumption in the UAE".

Scholarly checked:: 10 Sept 2026
Web checked:: Not checked yet

Open access portal Repository

Pairs well with

Many Indian data problems need survey + administrative combinations.