Sea Surface Temperature CDRv3

Description

Abstract

ESA’s Climate Change Initiative (CCI) has released the third major version of the SST CCI Climate Data Record (CDR) which now spans over 40 years, using data from Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR), Along Track Scanning Radiometer (ATSR), Sea and Land Surface Temperature Radiometer (SLSTR) instruments, Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer (AMSR)-E and AMSR2. The dataset includes both single-sensor products plus a Level 4 SST analysis generated using the Met Office Operational Sea Surface Temperature and Ice Analysis (OSTIA) system.

Version 3 of the SST CCI CDR is the first to make use of data from AVHRR/1 instruments carried on board NOAA-6, -8, and -10 platforms. This increases data coverage in the 1980s and extends the dataset back to 1980. The quality of the AVHRR retrievals has been improved by using a new bias aware optimal estimation (BAOE) technique and updated radiative transfer modelling which significantly reduces the SST biases due to dust aerosols seen in previous CDRs. Additionally, the dataset also includes passive microwave AMSRE and AMSR2 data, MetOp AVHRR now at full resolution, and dual-view SLSTR data.

Complementary to the ESA CCI CDR we are producing an Interim CDR (ICDR) to proving an ongoing extension in time of the SST-CCI CDR at short delay (approx. 2 weeks behind present). The ICDR was funded by the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) for 2022 and is now funded by the UK Earth Observation Climate Information Service (EOCIS) and UK Marine and Climate Advisory Service (UKMCAS) for 2023 onwards.