GHRSST Level 2P: Global Sea Surface Temperature from MetOp-B Satellite

A global sea surface temperature dataset derived from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer on the MetOp-B satellite. The US Naval Oceanographic Office produces this data for operational oceanographic analyses and forecasts. This version 2.0 features algorithm improvements and an increased spatial resolution of 4 km at nadir.

Use Cases

• Assimilating near-real-time SST observations into ocean forecast models based on the operational use mentioned.
• Monitoring global ocean heat content and climate variability based on the global, twice-daily coverage.
• Calibrating and validating other satellite-derived SST products based on the multi-channel retrieval method using 11 and 12 micron bands.
• Studying diurnal warming events in specific regions based on the sun-synchronous orbit providing two views per day.

Strengths

• Spatial resolution improved from 9 km to 4 km at nadir in the v2.0 update.
• Data is derived from a sensor with a 2400 km swath, providing broad coverage.
• Algorithm improvements include significant changes in cloud detection and removal of dependency on the HIRS sensor for consistent inter-calibration across MetOp satellites.

Limitations

• The effective 4 km resolution is derived from sampled and averaged data, not the sensor's native 1.1 km resolution.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count and total file size are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment for large-scale projects.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration, with contributions from ESA, EUMETSAT, and NOAA.

Collection Method

Multi-channel Sea Surface Temperature retrievals derived in real-time from AVHRR level-1B data.

Time Range

Covers the operational period of the MetOp-B satellite, launched 17 September 2012.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 02:41:19.269027; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Global coverage.