Indian Ocean Dipole Indicator from NASA Satellite Altimetry

1993 to present, this dataset provides a time series indicator for the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) climate mode, derived from satellite radar altimeter measurements of sea surface height anomalies. The data is produced by NASA using cyclostationary empirical orthogonal function analysis on gridded sea surface height data from missions like TOPEX/Poseidon, Jason, and Sentinel-6. The file is maintained as a continuously updated time series.

Use Cases

• Analyzing the phase and intensity of the Indian Ocean Dipole climate mode over time.
• Correlating IOD index values with regional climate impacts like rainfall patterns.
• Validating or initializing climate model simulations of Indian Ocean variability.
• Studying long-term trends in IOD behavior alongside other climate indices like ENSO.

Strengths

• Time series spans from at least 1993 to the present, providing over 30 years of continuous climate data.
• Derived from a standardized, multi-mission satellite record (NASA-SSH REF SIMPLE GRID V1) ensuring consistency.
• Indicator is calculated using a peer-reviewed cyclostationary empirical orthogonal function (CSEOF) method.
• File is explicitly maintained as the most up-to-date version, indicating ongoing curation.

Limitations

• Specific column names, row counts, and file sizes are not provided by any source.
• Sources conflict on license details: one specifies 'other-license-specified', while another lists no license.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Collection Method

Calculated from gridded sea surface height anomalies measured by satellite radar altimeter missions (TOPEX/Poseidon, Jason series, Sentinel-6), using cyclostationary empirical orthogonal function decomposition.

Time Range

1993 to present

Freshness

2026-03-12 23:27:58.082326

Geography

Indian Ocean region