MODIS SST4: Global Binned 4µm Day/Night Sea Surface Temperature

Global sea surface temperature data derived from the Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instruments aboard NASA's Terra and Aqua satellites. The dataset provides a skin temperature product (SST4) retrieved from mid-wave infrared bands near 4 µm, offering reduced sensitivity to atmospheric water vapor, particularly useful in humid or tropical conditions. These data support the development of Earth system models for understanding ocean dynamics and climate change.

Use Cases

• Monitoring diurnal sea surface temperature variations based on day/night satellite overpasses.
• Improving atmospheric correction in humid regions using the 4 µm band's reduced sensitivity to water vapor.
• Validating and calibrating other sea surface temperature products from different satellite sensors.
• Assessing ocean heat content and its role in climate modeling from global, daily coverage.

Strengths

• Provides global coverage of the Earth's surface every 1 to 2 days, enabling frequent temporal analysis.
• Data is acquired in 36 spectral bands, allowing for multi-spectral analysis and retrieval.
• SST4 product from mid-wave IR bands offers a complementary measurement with potential advantages in specific atmospheric conditions.

Limitations

• Key metadata such as row count, file size, and specific column definitions are unavailable across all platform entries.
• The dataset's license is ambiguously listed as 'other-license-specified' without further details.
• The primary description is repeated verbatim across multiple platform entries, suggesting a lack of platform-specific curation or documentation.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Collection Method

Satellite remote sensing via the MODIS instrument on the Terra (EOS AM) and Aqua (EOS PM) platforms.

Freshness

2026-04-09 21:47:59.405482

Geography

Global