MODIS Aqua Level 3 SST: 8-Day Nighttime Sea Surface Temperature at 9km Resolution

NASA MODIS Aqua Level 3 data provides global skin sea surface temperature (SST) products. The dataset includes average daily, weekly (8-day), monthly, and annual SST at 4.63 and 9.26 km spatial resolution, derived from satellite observations since Aqua's launch on May 4, 2002. The NASA Ocean Biology Processing Group (OBPG) generates the products, with algorithm development by Peter Minnett's team at RSMAS.

Use Cases

• Monitoring global ocean temperature anomalies based on spatially gridded (L3) SST products.
• Studying diurnal and seasonal SST variations based on day and night observations.
• Analyzing SST continuity and uncertainty using the SST4 product derived from mid-infrared channels.
• Mapping SST distribution using the integerized sinusoidal area grid (ISEAG) and equidistant cylindrical projection.

Strengths

• Provides two distinct SST products: skin SST (NSST) for day/night and SST4 with lower uncertainty for nighttime only.
• Offers multiple temporal aggregations: daily, 8-day, monthly, and annual averages.
• Data is from a long-running satellite mission, Aqua, launched in 2002 and part of the A-train formation.
• Products are available at two spatial resolutions: 4.63 km and 9.26 km.

Limitations

• The SST4 product, while having lower uncertainty, can only be used at night due to sun glint.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Ocean Biology Processing Group (OBPG)

Collection Method

Spatially gridded (L3) products generated from Level 2 pixels binned into an integerized sinusoidal area grid.

Time Range

Data collection began after the Aqua satellite launch on May 4, 2002.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 00:27:43.768232; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Global