The Coral Reef Temperature Anomaly Database (CoRTAD) Version 5 - Global, 4 km Sea Surface Temperature and Related Thermal Stress Metrics for 1982-2012 (NCEI Accession 0126774)
Version 5 of the Coral Reef Temperature Anomaly Database (CoRTAD) is a global, 4 km, sea surface temperature (SST) and related thermal stress metrics dataset for 1982-01-02 to 2012-12-28. The CoRTAD contains weekly-averaged SSTs, SST anomaly (SSTA, weekly SST minus weekly climatological SST), thermal stress anomaly (TSA, weekly SST minus the maximum weekly climatological SST), SSTA Degree Heating Week (SSTA_DHW, sum of previous 12 weeks when SSTA is greater than or equal to 1 degree C), SSTA Frequency (number of times over previous 52 weeks that SSTA is greater than or equal to 1 degree C), TSA DHW (TSA_DHW, also known as a Degree Heating Week, sum of previous 12 weeks when TSA is greater than or equal to 1 degree C), and TSA Frequency (number of times over previous 52 weeks that TSA is greater than or equal to 1 degree C). In addition, the CoRTAD includes ancillary sea ice concentration and marine wind speed data.
These data are the fifth in the series of CoRTAD datasets originally created in association with Elizabeth Selig (Director, Marine Science, Conservation International) and John Bruno (University of North Carolina; UNC - Chapel Hill). This dataset is based on the Pathfinder V5.2 dataset, and is created with support from the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program.
These data are the fifth in the series of CoRTAD datasets originally created in association with Elizabeth Selig (Director, Marine Science, Conservation International) and John Bruno (University of North Carolina; UNC - Chapel Hill). This dataset is based on the Pathfinder V5.2 dataset, and is created with support from the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program.
Dataset Citation
- Cite as: Casey, Kenneth S.; Selig, Elizabeth R.; Zhang, Dexin; Saha, Korak; Krishnan, Ajay; McMichael, Elizabeth (2015). The Coral Reef Temperature Anomaly Database (CoRTAD) Version 5 - Global, 4 km Sea Surface Temperature and Related Thermal Stress Metrics for 1982-2012 (NCEI Accession 0126774). [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://doi.org/10.7289/v5cz3545. Accessed [date].
Dataset Identifiers
ISO 19115-2 Metadata
gov.noaa.nodc:0126774
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Ordering Instructions | Contact NCEI for other distribution options and instructions. |
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NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information +1-301-713-3277 NCEI.Info@noaa.gov |
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NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information ncei.info@noaa.gov |
Time Period | 1982-01-02 to 2012-12-28 |
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West: -180
East: 180
South: -90
North: 90
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Dataset Progress Status | Complete - production of the data has been completed Historical archive - data has been stored in an offline storage facility |
Data Update Frequency | As needed |
Supplemental Information | [Text below adapted from: Selig, E.R., K.S. Casey, and J.F. Bruno (2010). New insights into global patterns of ocean temperature anomalies: implications for coral reef health and management, Global Ecology and Biogeography, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1466-8238.2009.00522.x. Hereafter referred to as "SCB2010".] The CoRTAD was developed using 1982-2012 data from the Pathfinder Version 5.2 collection (Casey et al., 2011) produced by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) and the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. These sea surface temperature data are derived from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) sensor and are processed to a resolution of approximately 4.6 km at the equator. These data have the highest resolution covering the longest time period of any satellite-based ocean temperature dataset. Daytime and nighttime data were averaged weekly using data with a quality flag of 4 or better. This level is a commonly accepted cutoff for "good" data (Kilpatrick et al., 2001, Casey and Cornillon, 1999). Previous versions of CoRTAD (versions 1-3) also incorporated pixels up to 5 degrees warmer than a course resolution reference SST based on the Reynolds Optimum Interpolation Sea Surface Temperature (Weekly, 1-degree OISST version 2.0). Since Pathfinder Version 5.2 already uses a finer resolution reference field (25 km Daily OISST) this additional step was not incorporated here in CoRTAD Version 5, or in the previous CoRTAD Version 4 (Casey et al., 2012). These processes resulted in a weekly SST dataset that is roughly 80% gap free. To create a gap-free dataset for analysis, 3 x 3 pixel median spatial fill was used. A temporal fill was then performed using the nonlinear least squares data fitting (Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm) in SLATEC Common Mathematical Library (in public domain) to fill the remaining gaps. This conservative approach was chosen because it provided interpolated SSTs that are bounded by the nearest available values in time. It also used data from only a very limited spatial domain, which is an important consideration given the variability of coral reef environments. Using these gap-filled data, we then created site-specific climatologies for each reef grid cell to describe long-term temperature patterns over the 31-year dataset. The climatology was generated using a harmonic analysis procedure that fits annual and semi-annual signals to the time series of weekly SSTs at each grid cell: climSST(t) = A*cos(2pi*t + B) + C*cos(4pi*t + D) + E (1) where t is time, A and B are coefficients representing the annual amplitude and phase, C and D are the semi-annual amplitude and phase, and E is the long-term temperature mean. Others have used similar approaches for generating climatologies because they are more robust than simple averaging techniques, which can be more susceptible to data gaps from periods of cloudiness (Podesta et al., 1991, Mesias et al., 2007). Please note in both CoRTAD Versions 4 and 5, a gap exists in the Pathfinder 5.2 dataset from 1994 day 275 to 1995 day 17 since Level 1B GAC data from NOAA-9 is not available from the NOAA archives. For these 3.5 months SST has been interpolated from Pathfinder 5.0 and 0.17K is subtracted to transform the data to the skin temperature basis of Pathfinder Version 5.2. In CoRTAD Version 5, the data are not stored in separate geographic tiles like in Version 4 and earlier. Instead, each data file contains the entire global coverage for a related grouping of CoRTAD parameters. Following are the version changes at glance: Version 5, 1982-01-02 - 2012-12-28, Global 4320x8640x1617 netCDF-4.1.2 Version 4, 1981-10-31 - 2010-12-31, Global 4320x8640, Tile 540x540, netCDF-4 Classic Version 3, 1982-01-01 - 2009-12-31, Global 4096x8192, Tile 512x512, HDF5 Version 2, 1982-01-01 - 2008-12-31, Global 4096x8192, Tile 512x512, HDF5 Version 1, 1985-01-01 - 2005-12-31, Global 4096x8192, Tile 512x512, HDF4 NCEI Accession Numbers: v5 0126774; v4 0087989; v3 0068999; v2 0054501; v1 0044419 |
Purpose | To provide sea surface temperature data and related thermal stress parameters with good temporal consistency, high accuracy, and fine spatial resolution. The CoRTAD is intended primarily for climate and ecosystem related applications and studies and was designed specifically to address questions concerning the relationship between coral disease and bleaching and temperature stress. |
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Last Modified: 2024-08-21T23:14:25Z
For questions about the information on this page, please email: ncei.info@noaa.gov
For questions about the information on this page, please email: ncei.info@noaa.gov