MODIS Sea Surface Temperature Seasonal Variations for Australian Waters

MODIS Derived Sea Surface Temperature dataset: Seasonal Variations measures long-term seasonal variations of ocean surface waters. It contains monthly SST images from July 2002 to December 2017, processed into standard deviations for four austral seasons. The dataset was produced by the Australian Ocean Data Network with support from the National Environmental Science Program Marine Biodiversity Hub.

Use Cases

• Analyze seasonal standard deviation of sea surface temperature to identify regions of highest climatic variability.
• Model the relationship between austral summer (December-February) SST patterns and marine heatwave occurrences.
• Map long-term autumn (March-May) temperature trends across the entire Australian Exclusive Economic Zone.
• Compare winter (June-August) SST stability in the southern ocean with other regional seas.

Strengths

• 15-year temporal coverage from July 2002 to December 2017.
• Spatial extent covers the entire Australian EEZ and surrounding waters, including the southern ocean.
• Data derived from MODIS (Aqua) satellite imagery using NASA's standardized SeaDAS processing software.

Limitations

• Dataset ends in December 2017, lacking recent years for contemporary climate analysis.
• Specific row and column counts, sample sizes, and resolution details are unknown.
• Limited to seasonal standard deviation metrics; original monthly SST images may not be included.

Provenance

Source

Australian Ocean Data Network, supported by the National Environmental Science Program (NESP) Marine Biodiversity Hub.

Collection Method

Derived from MODIS (Aqua) satellite images using NASA's SeaDAS image processing software. Monthly SST images were used to calculate seasonal standard deviations.

Time Range

July 2002 to December 2017.

Freshness

Last updated on platform in April 2026, but underlying data time range ends in 2017.

Geography

Entire Australian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and surrounding waters, including the southern ocean.