Australian Ocean Data Network provides underway sea surface temperature observations from the merchant vessel OOCL Houston. Bulk SST is measured by an SBE48 hull contact sensor located 8.2m below the summer load line, with 1-minute median values retrieved hourly and quality controlled at the Bureau of Meteorology. Daily files are available after 0100 UTC.
Use Cases
- Analyze sea surface temperature variability based on 1-minute median SST values
- Model ocean heat content based on underway observations from a specific vessel track
- Validate satellite-derived SST products based on in-situ, quality-controlled measurements
- Study diurnal SST cycles based on hourly data retrieval and daily file availability
Strengths
- Sensor location is precisely specified at 8.2m below the summer load line
- Data undergoes quality control at the Bureau of Meteorology
- Observations are 1-minute median values, reducing noise
Limitations
- Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download
- Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment
Provenance
- Source
- Australian Ocean Data Network
- Collection Method
- Data collected via SBE48 hull contact sensor on merchant vessel OOCL Houston, retrieved hourly and quality controlled at the Bureau of Meteorology.
- Freshness
- Last updated 2026-04-29 05:00:30.086429; freshness should be verified
- Geography
- Likely covers routes traversed by the merchant vessel OOCL Houston.