GOES-11 Satellite Sea Surface Temperature Data from GHRSST

Half-hourly skin sea surface temperature measurements derived from the far infrared channels of the GOES-11 satellite imager, processed into Level 2P datasets following the GHRSST Data Processing Specification version 1.5. The data is subsetted into granules representing distinct northern and southern regions of the full satellite disk. The dataset is produced by the Group for High Resolution Sea Surface Temperature (GHRSST) and hosted by NOAA.

Use Cases

• Analyzing diurnal warming cycles of the ocean surface using half-hourly SST measurements.
• Validating and calibrating ocean circulation models with spatially detailed skin SST data.
• Monitoring marine heatwave events and their spatial extent in the Eastern Pacific region.
• Assessing satellite-derived SST retrieval algorithms using the included Single Sensor Error Statistics (SSES).

Strengths

• Provides high temporal resolution data with half-hourly measurements, enabling study of rapid oceanic processes.
• Follows a standardized international processing specification (GHRSST GDS version 1.5), ensuring interoperability.

Limitations

• Specific column names, row counts, and file sizes are not provided by any source, limiting precise technical assessment.
• Sources conflict on the last update date, listing both 2011-07-10 and 2026-03-05, creating uncertainty about data currency.

Provenance

Source

Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-11) Imager, processed by the Group for High Resolution Sea Surface Temperature (GHRSST).

Collection Method

Skin SST calculated from far IR channels at full resolution, averaged vertically in native projection, and processed into L2P format.

Time Range

Coverage begins after the launch of GOES-11 on 3 May 2000; end date is unspecified.

Freshness

2026-03-05 22:49:51.866994

Geography

Eastern Pacific region, subdivided into northern and southern granule areas.