Abstract
Abstract : Sea surface temperature (SST) measurements are vital to global weather prediction, climate change studies, fisheries management, and a wide range of other applications. Measurements are taken by several satellites carrying infrared and microwave radiometers, moored buoys, drifting buoys, and ships. Collecting all these measurements together and producing global maps of SST has been a difficult endeavor due in part to different data formats, data location and accessibility, and lack of measurement error estimates. The need for a uniform approach to SST measurements and estimation of measurement errors resulted in the formation of the international Global Ocean Data Assimilation Experiment (GODAE) High Resolution SST Pilot Project (GHRSST-PP). Projects were developed in Japan, Europe, and Australia. Simultaneously, in the United States, the Multi-sensor Improved SST (MISST) project was initiated. Five years later, the MISST project has produced satellite SST data from nine satellites in an identical format with ancillary information and estimates of measurement error. Use of these data in global SST analyses has been improved through research into modeling of the ocean surface skin layer and upper ocean diurnal heating. These data and research results have been used by several groups within MISST to produce high-resolution global maps of SSTs, which have been shown to improve tropical cyclone prediction. Additionally, the new SSTs are now used operationally for marine weather warnings and forecasts.
Highlights
Curious as to why mail ships took longer to sail from Europe to America than in the opposite direction, Benjamin Franklin sponsored Folger to map a rumored ocean current using sea surface temperature
Almost 100 years later, when a bucket lowered over the side of a ship was still the standard tool for measuring Sea surface temperature (SST), the first idea for a satellite was published in a series of Atlantic Monthly short stories (Hale, 1869)
It is a key indicator of climate change, is widely applied to studies of upper ocean processes and air-sea heat exchange, and is used as a boundary condition for numerical weather prediction (NWP)
Summary
The MISST project has produced satellite SST data from nine satellites in an identical format with ancillary information and estimates of measurement error Use of these data in global SST analyses has been improved through research into modeling of the ocean surface skin layer and upper ocean diurnal heating. The scientists who develop SST measurement algorithms, validation scientists, diurnal-warming and cool-skin modelers, the scientists who develop and run operational SST analyses, and people from data distribution centers were all represented on the MISST project This combination of participants ensured that everyone involved in producing an SST product had a voice when decisions were being made. An additional MW satellite SST was added to the assimilation
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
