page_title: Sea surface temperature
hierarchical_section_title: Sea surface temperature
caption_attribution_description: Annual mean sea surface temperature from the World Ocean Atlas 2001. Temperature here is in degrees Celsius. It is plotted here using a Mollweide projection (using MATLAB and the M_Map package).
context_page_description: Sea surface temperature is the water temperature at the surface. In practical terms, the exact meaning of "surface" will vary according to the measurement method used. A satellite infrared radiometer indirectly measures the temperature of a very thin layer or skin of the ocean representing the top millimeter; a thermometer attached to an already fastened or wandering buoy in the ocean would measure the temperature at a specific depth; the measurements regularly made from ships are often from the engine water intakes and may be at various depths in the upper 20 m of the ocean. Note that the depth of measurement in this case will vary with the cargo aboard the vessel.
context_section_description: Sea surface temperature (SST) is the water temperature at the surface. In practical terms, the exact meaning of "surface" will vary according to the measurement method used. A satellite infrared radiometer indirectly measures the temperature of a very thin layer (about 10 micrometres thick) or skin of the ocean (leading to the phrase skin temperature) representing the top millimeter; a thermometer attached to an already fastened or wandering buoy in the ocean would measure the temperature at a specific depth (e.g. the top 1 meter below the sea surface); the measurements regularly made from ships are often from the engine water intakes and may be at various depths in the upper 20 m of the ocean. Note that the depth of measurement in this case will vary with the cargo aboard the vessel.
caption: Annual mean sea surface temperature. Data from the World Ocean Atlas 2001.
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