Terra MODIS NSST: Global Nighttime Sea Surface Temperature

NASA's Terra MODIS Level-3 Global Binned 11µm Nighttime Sea Surface Temperature (NSST) dataset provides near real-time (NRT) data. It is derived from thermal infrared observations and is designed to minimize diurnal warming effects. The data supports oceanographic monitoring and modeling, with variables including sea surface temperature in °C and an associated quality flag.

Use Cases

• Monitoring marine heatwaves based on global sea surface temperature measurements.
• Detecting ocean fronts and eddies using thermal infrared-derived temperature data.
• Providing boundary conditions for biogeochemical and climate analyses as referenced in the descriptions.
• Driving ecosystem and habitat models when paired with other ocean variables like chlorophyll-a (chlor_a).

Strengths

• Produced by the NASA Ocean Biology DAAC, indicating authoritative origin.
• Provides near real-time (NRT) data for timely monitoring applications.
• Nighttime SST (NSST) is specifically processed to minimize diurnal warming effects.

Limitations

• Metadata completeness is low; specific row counts, file sizes, and temporal coverage are not provided.
• The quicklook (NRT) products use less-than-optimal ancillary data and calibration, as noted in one description.
• IR-based SST is sensitive to clouds, aerosols, and diurnal warming, requiring careful use of quality flags.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Ocean Biology DAAC

Collection Method

Derived from Terra MODIS satellite thermal infrared observations.

Freshness

Last updated on 2026-04-09 according to datagov.

Geography

Global