S-MODE: Shipboard Ocean and Atmosphere Measurements

Approximately 300 km offshore of San Francisco, this dataset contains in-situ shipboard measurements from the Sub-Mesoscale Ocean Dynamics Experiment (S-MODE) field campaign. It includes thermosalinograph data for sea surface temperature and salinity, meteorology data for atmospheric conditions, and bio-optics data for chlorophyll. The data were collected during a pilot campaign in October 2021 and two intensive operating periods in Fall 2022 and Spring 2023.

Use Cases

• Analyzing vertical exchange of physical and biological variables based on thermosalinograph and chlorophyll measurements.
• Studying air-sea interactions based on concurrent meteorological and sea surface property data.
• Calibrating remote sensing data based on in-situ sea surface temperature and salinity measurements.
• Investigating sub-mesoscale ocean dynamics based on high-resolution shipboard time-series data.

Strengths

• Data is calibrated using onboard water samples compared to standard seawater and a laboratory salinometer.
• Contains integrated measurements across three domains: physical oceanography, meteorology, and bio-optics.
• Covers multiple field campaigns over a multi-year period, from October 2021 to Spring 2023.

Limitations

• Key metadata such as row count, file size, and specific column names are not provided on any platform.
• License is ambiguously listed as 'other-license-specified' on Data.gov, with no details provided on NASA Earthdata.
• The last update date conflicts between sources, with Data.gov showing 2026 (likely a placeholder) and NASA Earthdata showing 2023.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Shipboard measurements from the S-MODE field campaign, using thermosalinograph, meteorological sensors, and bio-optical instruments.

Time Range

October 2021 to Spring 2023

Freshness

2026-04-09 22:24:25.940371 (Data.gov), but this date is likely a placeholder or error; a more plausible date is 2023-05-04 (NASA Earthdata).

Geography

Ocean region approximately 300 km offshore of San Francisco, California, USA.