Sea Surface Temperature Observations from Merchant Vessel OOCL Panama

Daily files of 1-minute median Sea Surface Temperature (SST) values collected via hull contact sensor on the merchant vessel OOCL Panama. Observed data are retrieved hourly and quality controlled at the Bureau of Meteorology. The sensor is located 8.2 meters below the summer load line.

Use Cases

• Validate satellite-derived sea surface temperature products based on in-situ, quality-controlled measurements.
• Analyze diurnal and seasonal SST variability along shipping routes based on high-frequency 1-minute median values.
• Model ocean heat content and surface fluxes for climate studies based on continuous underway observations.
• Assess sensor performance and calibration for hull contact SST measurement systems.

Strengths

• Data undergoes quality control at the Bureau of Meteorology.
• Sensor location is precisely defined at 8.2 meters below the summer load line.
• Observations are high-frequency, providing 1-minute median SST values.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data may reflect geographic bias inherent to the specific vessel's route.

Provenance

Source

Australian Ocean Data Network

Collection Method

Underway observations collected via SBE48 hull contact sensor on merchant vessel OOCL Panama.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-05-05 22:12:51.655931; freshness should be verified.