GHRSST L2P: Global Sea Surface Skin Temperature from NASA Terra MODIS

NASA's Terra satellite, launched in 1999, provides global sea surface skin temperature (SST) data at a 1-kilometer resolution. The dataset includes two SST products derived from infrared channels, with full global coverage achieved every two days. It is produced by NASA JPL, the Ocean Biology Processing Group, and RSMAS as part of the GHRSST project.

Use Cases

• Modeling ocean heat content and climate patterns based on high-resolution skin temperature measurements.
• Validating and calibrating other satellite or in-situ sea surface temperature data sources.
• Studying diurnal temperature cycles using the day/night and SST4 products mentioned in the description.
• Analyzing polar ocean dynamics using data with complete daily coverage poleward of 32.3 degrees.

Strengths

• Data has a high spatial resolution of 1 kilometer at nadir.
• Provides two distinct SST products (skin SST and SST4) for day and night observations.
• Production involves a joint collaboration between NASA JPL, OBPG, and RSMAS, suggesting rigorous processing.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• The SST4 product has lower uncertainty but is only available at night due to sun glint constraints.
• Row count and exact file sizes are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Collection Method

Satellite remote sensing from the MODIS instrument on the Terra satellite, processed and formatted to GHRSST L2P specifications.

Time Range

Data collection began after Terra's launch on December 18, 1999; temporal coverage is ongoing.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 02:41:33.584371; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Global ocean coverage, with complete coverage poleward of 32.3 degrees each day.