S-MODE: Shipboard Radiometer Fluxes from the R/V Oceanus

S-MODE Shipboard Radiometer Measurements Version 1 contains air-sea interaction data collected during the Sub-Mesoscale Ocean Dynamics Experiment pilot campaign. Air-Sea Interaction METeorology sensors on the R/V Oceanus recorded shortwave and longwave radiation fluxes approximately 300 km offshore of San Francisco over two weeks in October 2021. These measurements support the S-MODE mission to understand how small-scale ocean dynamics influence vertical exchanges of physical and biological variables.

Use Cases

• Validating DopplerScatt remote sensing retrievals based on shipboard radiometer measurements.
• Analyzing shortwave and longwave radiation fluxes to study air-sea interaction dynamics.
• Investigating the role of sub-mesoscale ocean processes in vertical transport of heat and biological properties.
• Comparing in-situ atmospheric radiation data with satellite-derived ocean surface observations.

Strengths

• Data originates from a focused NASA field campaign with a clear scientific objective to understand sub-mesoscale dynamics.
• Measurements have precise geospatial and temporal context, collected ~300 km offshore of San Francisco over a defined two-week period.
• Dataset is available in the structured, self-describing netCDF format, which is standard for geoscientific data.

Limitations

• Column names and specific variable details are not provided in the available metadata, limiting immediate understanding of the data structure.
• Conflicting metadata exists: one source lists a last update date of 2026-04-09, while another shows no update information.
• The dataset's size and row count are unknown, making it difficult to assess its scale for analysis.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Shipboard measurements from Air-Sea Interaction METeorology sensors mounted on the R/V Oceanus.

Time Range

October 2021 (two-week campaign)

Freshness

2026-04-09 22:23:52.316446

Geography

Approximately 300 km offshore of San Francisco, California, USA.