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Ocean Data Access and Tools

NASA data span the geophysical parameters that characterize the global ocean and the physical processes operating within its depths and at its surface. Our datasets and tools help researchers translate these interconnected data points into actionable knowledge.

Visit Ocean Learning Resources to better understand the metadata for each data collection.

Ocean Datasets

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Dataset Version Platform Instrument Temporal Extent Spatial Extent Spatial Resolution Data Format
MODIS Terra Level 3 SST Thermal IR Monthly 4km Nighttime V2019.0 2019.0 Terra MODIS 2000-02-24

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

0.041 Decimal Degrees x 0.041 Decimal Degrees netCDF-4
MODIS Terra Level 3 SST Thermal IR Monthly 9km Daytime V2019.0 2019.0 Terra MODIS 2000-02-24

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

0.083 Decimal Degrees x 0.083 Decimal Degrees netCDF-4
MODIS Terra Level 3 SST Thermal IR Monthly 9km Nighttime V2019.0 2019.0 Terra MODIS 2000-02-24

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

0.083 Decimal Degrees x 0.083 Decimal Degrees netCDF-4
MODIS/Aqua Ocean Reflectance Daily L2G-Lite Global 1km SIN Grid V006 006 Aqua MODIS 2002-07-04 to 2023-02-26

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1000 Meters x 1000 Meters HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent 5-Min L2 Swath 1km NRT 6.1NRT Aqua MODIS 2021-02-07

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1 Kilometers x 1 Kilometers HDF-EOS
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent 5-Min L2 Swath 1km V004 4 Aqua MODIS 2002-07-04 to 2006-12-31

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1 Kilometers x 1 Kilometers HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent 5-Min L2 Swath 1km V004 4 Aqua MODIS 2002-07-04 to 2006-12-31

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1 Kilometers x 1 Kilometers HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent 5-Min L2 Swath 1km V005 5 Aqua MODIS 2002-07-04 to 2017-01-02

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1 Kilometers x 1 Kilometers GeoTIFF, HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent and IST Daily L3 Global 4km EASE-Grid Day V004 4 Aqua MODIS 2002-07-04 to 2007-01-03

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

4 Kilometers x 4 Kilometers HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent and IST Daily L3 Global 4km EASE-Grid Day V004 4 Aqua MODIS 2002-07-04 to 2007-01-03

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

4 Kilometers x 4 Kilometers HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent and IST Daily L3 Global 4km EASE-Grid Day V005 5 Aqua MODIS 2002-07-04 to 2017-01-01

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

4 Kilometers x 4 Kilometers GeoTIFF, HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent and IST Daily L3 Global 4km EASE-Grid Day V005 5 Aqua MODIS 2002-07-04 to 2017-01-01

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

4 Kilometers x 4 Kilometers GeoTIFF, HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent Daily L3 Global 1km EASE-Grid Day V003 3 Aqua MODIS 1998-01-01 to 2003-02-26

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1 Kilometers x 1 Kilometers HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent Daily L3 Global 1km EASE-Grid Day V004 4 Aqua MODIS 2002-07-04 to 2006-12-31

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1 Kilometers x 1 Kilometers HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent Daily L3 Global 1km EASE-Grid Day V004 4 Aqua MODIS 2002-07-04 to 2006-12-31

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1 Kilometers x 1 Kilometers HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent Daily L3 Global 1km EASE-Grid Day V005 5 Aqua MODIS 2002-07-04 to 2017-01-02

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1 Kilometers x 1 Kilometers GeoTIFF, HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent Daily L3 Global 1km EASE-Grid Day V005 5 Aqua MODIS 2002-07-04 to 2017-01-02

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1 Kilometers x 1 Kilometers GeoTIFF, HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent Daily L3 Global 1km EASE-Grid Night V003 3 Aqua MODIS 1998-01-01 to 2003-08-12

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1 Kilometers x 1 Kilometers GeoTIFF, HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent Daily L3 Global 1km EASE-Grid Night V004 4 Aqua MODIS 2002-05-04 to 2002-10-08

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1 Kilometers x 1 Kilometers GeoTIFF, HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent Daily L3 Global 1km EASE-Grid Night V005 5 Aqua MODIS 2002-07-04 to 2017-01-02

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1 Kilometers x 1 Kilometers GeoTIFF, HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Aqua Sea Ice Extent Daily L3 Global 1km EASE-Grid Night V005 5 Aqua MODIS 2002-07-04 to 2017-01-02

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1 Kilometers x 1 Kilometers GeoTIFF, HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Terra Ocean Reflectance Daily L2G-Lite Global 1km SIN Grid V006 006 Terra MODIS 2000-02-24 to 2023-02-17

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1000 Meters x 1000 Meters HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Terra Sea Ice Extent 5-Min L2 Swath 1km NRT 6.1NRT Terra MODIS 2021-02-07

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1 Kilometers x 1 Kilometers HDF-EOS
MODIS/Terra Sea Ice Extent 5-Min L2 Swath 1km V004 4 Terra MODIS 2000-02-24 to 2006-12-31

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1 Kilometers x 1 Kilometers HDF-EOS2, HDF-EOS2
MODIS/Terra Sea Ice Extent 5-Min L2 Swath 1km V004 4 Terra MODIS 2000-02-24 to 2006-12-31

N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180

1 Kilometers x 1 Kilometers HDF-EOS2, HDF-EOS2
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Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) Platform

SWOT provides detailed surface topography and monitors water body changes over time. The platform enables high-resolution ocean monitoring at 15-150 km spatial scales, tracking ocean currents, coastal dynamics, storm surges, and regional sea level changes. On land, SWOT measures water storage changes in lakes, reservoirs, rivers, and wetlands, supporting river discharge estimates for water resource assessment.

Discover more from SWOT
Earthdata grapic identifier on patterned background

SWOT Swath Visualizer

The Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) Swath Visualizer provides a visualization of two instruments’ coverage of Earth's surface: the Ka-band Radar Interferometer and altimeter.

Ocean Data Tools

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Tool Description Services
AppEEARS The The Application for Extracting and Exploring Analysis Ready Samples (AppEEARS) offers users a simple and efficient way to perform data access and transformation processes. Search and Discovery, Subsetting, Customization, Downloading, Visualization
CASEI The Catalog of Archived Suborbital Earth Science Investigations (CASEI) is a comprehensive inventory of contextual information for NASA's Earth Science airborne and field campaigns. Search and Discovery, Cataloging
CyAN File Search The CyAN File Search tool allows users to choose an area over the continental United States and Alaska to retrieve cyanobacteria datasets archived by the Cyanobacteria Assessment Network (CyAN) project. Analysis, Search and Discovery, Visualization
CyFi Explorer CyFi Explorer enables users to view corresponding Sentinel-2 satellite imagery for each cyanobacteria estimate, and estimate cyanobacteria density. Analysis, Search and Discovery, Visualization
Giovanni Giovanni is a web application for accessing, visualizing, and analyzing Earth science remote sensing data without downloading the data. Search and Discovery, Analysis, Access, Visualization, Downloading, Subsetting
Hydrocron Hydrocron is an API that repackages hydrology datasets from SWOT into formats that make time-series analysis easier. Subsetting, Visualization
Ocean Color Level 3 and 4 Browser The Ocean Color Level 3 and 4 Browser allows users to view, download, or order global composites at various spatial and temporal scales (level 3) or get results from analyses of lower-level data (level 4). Analysis, Search and Discovery, Visualization
Panoply Panoply is a cross-platform application that plots geo-referenced and other arrays from netCDF, HDF, GRIB, and other datasets. Visualization, Customization, Reformatting, Subsetting, Comparison
SeaBASS SeaBASS is public archive of ocean and atmosphere data captured in situ. The archive is maintained by NASA's Ocean Biology Processing Group (OBPG). Downloading
SeaDAS Sea, earth, atmosphere Data Analysis System (SeaDAS) is a comprehensive image analysis package for the processing, display, analysis, and quality control of ocean color data. Analysis, Visualization, Processing
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