Abstract Seven years of daytime sampled Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) global data from the NOAA afternoon satellites were analyzed. Surface temperature in cloud-free conditions was derived using a split-window formulation with emissivity dependent upon vegetation cover. Results are demonstrated on diverse land surfaces in different climatic conditions. Monthly anomalies of satellite-derived surface temperature are in reasonable agreement with those obtained from conventional air temperature measurements. Impact of satellite orbit drift on derived land temperatures from the afternoon satellites is discussed.