Oceans: OVERVIEW

"Liquid Assets" for Oceanographic Research

From its beginnings in the early 1990s to the present day, the Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC) has been a vital resource with global connections to the oceanographic research community.  Oceanographic data from the GES DISC has been used for numerous scientific investigations in the oceanic realm.  The early activities of the GES DISC (formerly the Distributed Active Archive Center, or DAAC) established it as a preeminent source of oceanographic data.  The Coastal Zone Color Scanner (CZCS) data archive was an unprecedented source of data for biological oceanography.  The archive of oceanographic data grew with the data from SeaWiFS, OCTS, and MODIS. MODIS data included sea surface temperature (SST), a basic data element for studies in physical oceanography.  Other instruments, such as the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) and the Atmospheric Infrared Sensor (AIRS), provide data that can be used to investigate the energetics of ocean-atmosphere interaction.

The Ocean Biology Processing Group (OBPG) is now designated as the data access and data distribution site for ocean color data from NASA missions, via the Ocean Color Web. The OBPG provides access to SeaWiFS and MODIS-Aqua data products, and will provide access to reprocessed OCTS and CZCS data products when analysis and reprocessing is completed. Current data products available from the Ocean Color Web include MODIS-Aqua SST data.

Questions about ocean color data products available in Giovanni can be sent to GES DISC Help, and questions about SeaWiFS and MODIS data can be submitted to the Ocean Color Forum, part of the Ocean Color Web/OBPG.