Aqua MODIS NSST: Nighttime Sea Surface Temperature

Aqua MODIS Level-3 Global Binned 11µm Nighttime Sea Surface Temperature (NSST) provides near real-time global estimates derived from thermal infrared observations taken during local night to minimize diurnal warming effects. The dataset includes variables for sea surface temperature in degrees Celsius and an integer quality flag for each measurement. These data are produced by the Ocean Biology DAAC using the best-available ancillary meteorological and ozone data available at processing time.

Use Cases

• Detecting ocean fronts based on nighttime sea surface temperature gradients.
• Supporting fisheries habitat models when paired with chlorophyll-a (chlor_a), diffuse attenuation (Kd_490), and photosynthetically available radiation (PAR) data.
• Providing stable inputs for air–sea flux and climate analysis using nighttime temperature estimates.
• Monitoring global sea surface temperature patterns in near real-time for operational oceanography.

Strengths

• Provides near real-time data, offering a snapshot within a single orbit.
• Focuses on nighttime observations to minimize errors from diurnal warming and sun glint.
• Cross-platform presence on NASA Earthdata and Data.gov signals its importance and reliability for the community.

Limitations

• Inputs and calibration are described as 'less than optimal' because they use the best-available ancillary data at processing time.
• Uncertainties increase under conditions of thin clouds, heavy aerosols, dust, or strong thermal gradients.
• Key metadata such as row count, file size, and specific license details are missing or conflicting across sources.

Provenance

Source

Ocean Biology DAAC (OB_DAAC)

Collection Method

Derived from thermal infrared observations from the Aqua MODIS satellite sensor.

Freshness

Last updated date reported as 2026-03-13 on some platforms, but this appears to be a placeholder or future date.

Geography

Global