Saildrone Arctic 2021: Ocean and Atmosphere Observations

Two Saildrone uncrewed surface vehicles collected surface ocean and atmospheric data in the Bering and Chukchi Seas from 6 July to 20 September 2021. The 76-day mission focused on measuring air-sea covariance near the sea ice edge and validating satellite sea-surface temperature measurements. The dataset includes measurements of air temperature, wind, waves, seawater temperature and salinity, chlorophyll fluorescence, dissolved oxygen, and near-surface currents.

Use Cases

• Validating satellite-derived sea-surface temperature measurements using in-situ skin temperature data.
• Analyzing air-sea heat and momentum fluxes near the sea ice edge.
• Studying spatial/temporal scales of covariance between atmospheric and oceanographic variables.
• Mapping near-surface ocean currents using acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) data.
• Monitoring chlorophyll fluorescence and dissolved oxygen for biological and chemical oceanography studies.

Strengths

• Data collected by two autonomous vehicles over a 76-day continuous mission.
• Includes a suite of co-located atmospheric and oceanographic measurements for covariance analysis.
• Vehicles approached within 50 km of the sea ice edge, capturing data in a critical transition zone.

Limitations

• Column names and exact data structure are not specified in the provided metadata.
• Conflicting last updated dates (2026-04-09 on datagov vs. 2021-10-21 on nasa_earthdata) create uncertainty about data currency.
• Dataset size and row counts are unknown, limiting assessment of scope.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Deployment of two wind and solar-powered Saildrone uncrewed surface vehicles (SD-1057, SD-1058).

Time Range

2021-07-06 to 2021-09-20

Freshness

2026-04-09

Geography

Bering and Chukchi Seas, Alaskan arctic waters