MODIS Aqua: Global Sea Surface Temperature from Satellite Thermal IR, Monthly 9km Daytime

Global spatially gridded skin sea surface temperature (SST) data from the NASA MODIS instrument onboard the Aqua satellite. The dataset provides monthly daytime averages at a 9.26 km resolution, derived from thermal infrared channels using algorithms developed by the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. The data is processed by the NASA Ocean Biology Processing Group and archived by the JPL Physical Oceanography Data Archive (PO.DAAC).

Use Cases

• Modeling global ocean heat flux and climate patterns based on monthly skin sea surface temperature averages.
• Calibrating other satellite-derived SST products based on the MODIS thermal infrared algorithm described.
• Studying diurnal and seasonal SST variability based on the separate day (NSST) and night (SST4) products mentioned.
• Analyzing long-term SST trends for climate research based on the data record starting from the Aqua satellite launch in 2002.

Strengths

• Data originates from the NASA MODIS Aqua satellite, a well-calibrated sensor launched on May 4, 2002.
• Provides two distinct SST products: a day/night skin SST (NSST) and a lower-uncertainty night-only product (SST4).
• Spatial resolution is specified as 9.26 kilometers for the gridded monthly product.
• Algorithm development and quality flagging are handled by a specialized team at the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment for large-scale statistical modeling.
• The SST4 product with lower uncertainty is only available for night observations due to sun glint.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Ocean Biology Processing Group (OBPG), JPL Physical Oceanography Data Archive (PO.DAAC).

Collection Method

Satellite remote sensing data from the MODIS instrument on the Aqua satellite, binned and mapped into an integerized sinusoidal area grid (ISEAG).

Time Range

Temporal coverage likely begins after the Aqua satellite launch on May 4, 2002.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-12 23:56:45.427154; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Global.