GHRSST Level 2P: Global 1 km Sea Surface Temperature from Metop-B/AVHRR

A global 1 km sea surface temperature dataset produced in near real-time by the EUMETSAT Ocean and Sea Ice Satellite Application Facility (OSI SAF). The data is derived from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) on the Metop-B satellite, launched in September 2012, using a multispectral algorithm corrected with atmospheric profiles. The product is delivered as full-resolution metagranules corresponding to 3-minute acquisition intervals, compliant with the GHRSST Data Specification version 2.

Use Cases

• Modeling ocean heat content and climate patterns based on global sub-skin sea surface temperature measurements.
• Validating and calibrating other satellite or in-situ ocean temperature data based on the GHRSST-standardized product.
• Assimilating near real-time SST data into numerical weather prediction models based on the operational production system.
• Studying diurnal warming and regional oceanographic features based on the 1 km spatial and 3-minute temporal resolution.

Strengths

• Global coverage at a high spatial resolution of 1 kilometer.
• Data is produced in near real-time from an operational satellite (Metop-B) launched in 2012.
• Product is compliant with the international GHRSST Data Specification version 2, ensuring interoperability.
• Atmospheric correction is applied using profiles from a numerical weather prediction model to reduce regional biases.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count and total dataset size are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• The description does not specify the exact temporal coverage beyond the satellite's launch date.

Provenance

Source

European Organization for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT), Ocean and Sea Ice Satellite Application Facility (OSI SAF).

Collection Method

SST retrieved from AVHRR infrared channels using a multispectral algorithm, with atmospheric correction from a numerical weather prediction model.

Time Range

Data is produced in near real-time from the Metop-B satellite, launched 17 September 2012.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 02:33:32.731842; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Global.