DMSP F10 Satellite Weekly Ocean Winds, Vapor, Cloud, and Rain Data

20 years of algorithm development underpin this NASA MEaSUREs Program dataset from the DMSP F10 satellite. Remote Sensing Systems provides weekly averaged global ocean measurements for wind speed, water vapor, cloud water, and rain rate. Data is reformatted into netCDF by the Global Hydrology Resource Center.

Use Cases

• Analyzing global ocean surface wind patterns using the wind speed variable.
• Studying atmospheric moisture content and distribution via the water vapor retrieval.
• Investigating cloud microphysics and liquid water content from the cloud water data.
• Examining precipitation rates and patterns over the ocean using the rain rate variable.
• Conducting climate trend analysis using the intercalibrated SSM/I and SSMIS time series.

Strengths

• Data products are generated using a unified, physically based algorithm refined over 20 years.
• SSMIS data is intercalibrated with previous SSM/I sensors to ensure a consistent long-term time series.
• Dataset is part of NASA's MEaSUREs Program and produced by Remote Sensing Systems, a recognized authority.

Limitations

• Critical metadata conflicts exist: the 'last updated' date differs significantly between Data.gov (2026-03-12) and NASA Earthdata (1997-11-15).
• Specific data volume, row count, and column names are not provided by any source.
• License is listed as 'other-license-specified' on Data.gov but is 'None' on NASA Earthdata, creating ambiguity.

Provenance

Source

Remote Sensing Systems, produced for NASA's MEaSUREs Program.

Collection Method

Satellite microwave radiometer measurements from DMSP F10, processed with a unified retrieval algorithm and reformatted to netCDF.

Time Range

null

Freshness

2026-03-12 21:53:46.643949

Geography

Global ocean coverage.