Sea Surface Temperature Multi-Sensor Composite for 72 Hours

The IMOS Multi-sensor SSTfnd L3S product provides sea surface temperature data averaged over a 72-hour period. It is derived from VIIRS sensors on Suomi-NPP and JPSS satellites and AVHRR sensors on NOAA and Metop satellites, with quality remapping based on Sensor Specific Error Statistics. The data is presented as a 0.02-degree resolution cylindrical equidistant map covering the region 70E to 170W, 20N to 70S.

Use Cases

• Analyzing regional sea surface temperature trends based on multi-sensor satellite composites.
• Modeling ocean heat content and climate patterns based on 72-hour averaged SST data.
• Validating satellite-derived SST algorithms based on quality levels remapped from original sensor data.
• Studying diurnal SST variations based on day and night observations filtered by wind speed thresholds.

Strengths

• Data integrates observations from multiple satellite sensors (VIIRS and AVHRR) and platforms.
• Spatial resolution is 0.02 degrees, providing detailed geographic coverage.
• Quality levels are remapped using Sensor Specific Error Statistics (SSES) as described in a referenced methodology.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.

Provenance

Source

AODN

Collection Method

Derived from sea surface temperature retrievals from VIIRS and AVHRR sensors on multiple polar-orbiting satellites, composited and averaged over 72 hours.

Time Range

72-hour periods (specific dates unknown)

Geography

Cylindrical equidistant map covering 70E to 170W, 20N to 70S.