Multi-Mission Optimally Interpolated Sea Surface Salinity Global Dataset V1

A continuous global sea surface salinity record from August 28, 2011 to present on a 0.25-degree spatial and 4-day temporal grid. The dataset is produced by the International Pacific Research Center and Remote Sensing Systems, combining data from Aquarius, SMAP, and SMOS satellites using Optimal Interpolation. In-situ salinity from Argo floats and moored buoys is used for bias correction and accuracy.

Use Cases

• Modeling global ocean circulation and freshwater fluxes based on the 0.25-degree salinity grid.
• Analyzing long-term salinity trends and anomalies based on the continuous record from 2011 to present.
• Validating satellite salinity retrieval algorithms based on the multi-mission (Aquarius, SMAP, SMOS) data fusion.
• Studying polar ocean salinity in ice-free areas based on the dataset's coverage of the Arctic and Antarctic.

Strengths

• Continuous temporal coverage from August 2011 to present, created by concatenating multiple satellite missions.
• Spatial resolution of 0.25 degrees and a 4-day temporal grid for detailed analysis.
• Uses in-situ data from Argo floats and moored buoys for large-scale bias correction and accuracy assurance.
• Explicitly addresses data gaps, using SMOS to fill a 2019 SMAP outage and a two-month overlap for consistency.

Limitations

• Does not cover internal seas such as the Mediterranean and Baltic Sea.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Coverage is limited to areas free of sea ice in the polar regions.

Provenance

Source

International Pacific Research Center (IPRC) of the University of Hawaii at Manoa in collaboration with Remote Sensing Systems (RSS).

Collection Method

Derived from level 2 swath data of Aquarius, SMAP, and SMOS satellites using Optimal Interpolation (OI) with a 7-day decorrelation time scale.

Time Range

August 28, 2011 to present.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-12 23:35:12.183337

Geography

Global ocean, including Arctic and Antarctic in areas free of sea ice.