Product Types
Water Quality
Hardware issues result in inaccessible data
Announcement
Data access has been restored.
Sea surface temperature processing issues
Announcement
Sea surface temperature processing of ACSPO FRAC L2P/L3U and L3S products has been suspended due to ongoing maintenance beginning August 12, 2024.
Monitoring water clarity on Cape Cod with satellite imagery: CoastWatch-led study
User Story
CoastWatch researchers recently collaborated with scientists in Massachusetts to study the feasibility of using satellite data to monitor water clarity in Cape Cod.
Upcoming ACSPO SST Filename change
Announcement
The NOAA Advanced Clear-Sky Processor for Ocean (ACSPO) L3S-LEO-PM and L3S-LEO-DY products will be updated from ACSPO v2.80 to ACSPO v2.81 on October 2, 2023.
The updates from V2.80 are:
NOAA-21 reaches Provisional Maturity for SST
Announcement
The Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) has approved NOAA-21 Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) Advanced Clear Sky Processor for Ocean (ACSPO) sea surface temperature (SST) products for Provisional Maturity
Sargassum FAQ
User Story
A Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for Sargassum was composed by the NOAA Atlantic Oceanographic & Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) in partnership with NOAA CoastWatch Caribbean, Gulf of America, and Atlantic OceanWatch Node.
Harmful Algal Bloom Monitoring and Forecasting in the Gulf of America
User Story
NOAA's National Ocean Service uses Coast Watch ocean color data along with cell counts and other environmental information to produce a Harmful Algal Blooms Observing System (HABSOS) and a Harmful Algal Bloom Operational Forecast System (HAB-OFS)
Ocean acidification in the Caribbean
User Story
In collaboration with the NOAA Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory's Ocean Chemistry and Ecosystems Division and NOAA Coral Reef Watch, the Caribbean/Gulf of America node of CoastWatch produces an ocean acidification product suite for the greater Caribbean region to track changes in the surface ocean that can be used as an important tool in coral reef research and management.
Temperature Climate Indicators of Estuaries
User Story
The National Estuary Program identifies, protects, and conserves water quality for ecologically significant estuaries and surrounding watersheds. The National Estuary Program uses Sea Surface Temperature time series products produced by the NOAA CoastWatch East Coast Node for estuary management.
Booklet: Advanced techniques for monitoring water quality using Earth Observation
User Story
AquaWatch, the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) Water Quality Initiative, presents information about water quality issues and monitoring in a variety of habitats and exemplars of water quality monitoring using archived and next generation Earth Observation data using technologies developed and exploited by researchers within the AquaWatch community.
Atlantic OceanWatch Assisting FEMA as Sargassum Reaches Record Levels in Caribbean
User Story
Node Managers Dr. Goni and Dr. Trinanes are participating in the USVI/Sargassum Emergency FEMA Workshop in St. Croix
NOAA researchers review approaches to satellite-derived coastal water quality products
User Story
![Scientific Figure showing contributions of phytoplankton(link is external), CDOM, and nonalgal particulate(link is external) absorption coefficients(link is external) to total non-water absorption for waters with relatively (a) higher and (b) lower degrees of correlation between [Chl-a] and Rrs(490)/Rrs(555)](../sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/2022-12/1-s2.0-S0079661116302592-gr13f81d.jpg?itok=rBw8w8QW)
In a paper published in 2017 in Progress in Oceanography, coauthors Guanming Zheng and Paul M. DiGiacomo reviewed approaches to deriving water quality products from satellite ocean color data. They quantify and discuss the inherent uncertainties surrounding the characterization of water quality parameters of interest in coastal waters
CoastWatch Tools and Data Featured in Undergraduate Courses
User Story
Dr. Sherry Palacios from CSUMB utilizes CoastWatch ERDDAP, Data Portal, and training materials in her oceanography curricula.
Annotated Ocean Color from VIIRS
Gallery Images
Sentinel-2 Maximum Chlorophyll Index (Experimental)
Gallery Images
| 2025-11-21 | Switch from Himawari-8 to Himawari-9 |
| 2025-09-11 | Possible disruptions in ASCAT wind and SEVIRI SST products |
| 2025-08-20 | NOAA CoastWatch Sentinel-1C data availability |
| 2025-06-17 | Product Availability |
