The Coral Reef Temperature Anomaly Database (CoRTAD) provides global sea surface temperature and thermal stress metrics at approximately 4 km resolution on a weekly scale from 1985 through 2005. It was created by NOAA's National Oceanographic Data Center in partnership with the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill. The dataset includes SST anomalies, Degree Heating Weeks, and frequency metrics designed for climate and ecosystem studies.
Use Cases
- Model coral bleaching events based on Degree Heating Week (DHW) metrics.
- Analyze long-term thermal stress patterns on coral reefs based on weekly SST anomaly data.
- Study the relationship between coral disease and temperature stress using the dataset's designed metrics.
- Monitor global sea surface temperature anomalies for other marine ecosystems based on the 4 km resolution data.
Strengths
- Global coverage with approximately 4 km spatial resolution.
- Weekly temporal resolution spanning 21 years from 1985 to 2005.
- Includes multiple derived thermal stress metrics like SSTA_DHW and TSA Frequency.
Limitations
- Last updated 2005-12-31 00:00:00; freshness should be verified.
- Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
- Row count and file formats are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
Provenance
- Source
- NOAA National Oceanographic Data Center and University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill.
- Time Range
- 1985-2005
- Geography
- Global