Image of Sea Surface Temperature over the Western Hemishpere.
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A daily Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Sea Surface (SST) composite is being developed under NASA's Short-term Prediction and Research Transition (SPoRT) program. The SPoRT MODIS SST composite provides near real-time, high resolution, complete spatial coverage data for Mesoamerica. SST changes have important biological implications for hospitable/inhospitable conditions for many organisms including species of plankton, seagrasses, shellfish, fish and mammals.

The SPoRT MODIS SST composite algorithm uses the EOS version 4 SST product (a measurement of the skin temperature of the ocean) to generate a detailed and spatially continuous SST field while minimizing cloud contamination and latency effects.

The SPoRT compositing approach is based on the assumption that day-to-day changes in SST values are relatively small and thus, for a given region, SST values from a preceding day are representative of the current day’s values. The validity of this assumption may vary spatially and seasonally as oceanic and atmospheric forcing create higher frequency changes in SST values. The compositing approach uses a collection of the three most recent clear SST values (as determined by a cloud mask) for each pixel within the domain separately for Aqua (1:30 p.m./a.m. local time) and Terra (10:30 a.m./p.m.) daytime and nighttime satellite passes. Each collection of image data can contain SST values from passes several days apart with relatively large differences in SST at each pixel location, sometimes resulting in a composite with large pixel-to-pixel variations. Cloud contamination can also create erroneous pixel values.

The SPoRT MODIS SST composite product is generated using a method that averaged the warmest two of the three SST values in the collection for each pixel, discarding the coldest, thereby removing cloud contaminated pixels which eluded detection by the cloud mask. To help dampen noise and any additional effects of cloud contamination in the composite, while not significantly reducing the spatial gradients, the average of the 3 x 3 array surrounding each pixel is computed and replaces the composite value.

Mesoamerican Sea Surface Temperature Products
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