I found a work around. For each product there is a .dat file and .txt header file. The begging of each header file looks like this:

Format version: NOHRSC GIS/RS raster file v1.1 Data source: RUC2, NESDIS, etc. Created by module: sm_products Created by module comment: number BARD codes: 0000000024 BARD codes: 447200641 453379106 363670475 448507164 447201002 447200999 448507161 447201003 447200647 458956735 449198303 447201000 12222 226921937 194762463 194750795 120043862 319955379 194761059 244392413 324899530 445116660 445116661 445116662 Created year: 2011 Created month: 1 Created day: 19 Created hour: 5 Created minute: 42

I had to modify the script to delete the bold numbers (following the second occurrence of "BARD codes:"). For the products that worked (precipitation) this information was always blank.

edit: After contacting NSIDC they referred me to this page - the key point here is that you must create an entirely new .hdr file, rather than simply appending those lines to the .txt 'header' that comes in the tarball.

I found a work around. For each product there is a .dat file and .txt header file. The begging of each header file looks like this:

Format version: NOHRSC GIS/RS raster file v1.1 Data source: RUC2, NESDIS, etc. Created by module: sm_products Created by module comment: number BARD codes: 0000000024 BARD codes: 447200641 453379106 363670475 448507164 447201002 447200999 448507161 447201003 447200647 458956735 449198303 447201000 12222 226921937 194762463 194750795 120043862 319955379 194761059 244392413 324899530 445116660 445116661 445116662 Created year: 2011 Created month: 1 Created day: 19 Created hour: 5 Created minute: 42

I had to modify the script to delete the bold numbers (following the second occurrence of "BARD codes:"). For the products that worked (precipitation) this information was always blank.