Ocean

Oceanic variables include sea surface temperature, salinity, currents, air-sea heat fluxes, ocean heat content, and much more. Overview pages summarize and compare selected datasets of a given variable.

To find a specific dataset or variable, jump to the search box below or click your desired variable from among the blue sub-category buttons.

To see only the datasets with expert-written commentaries, select the "Datasets with guidance" button when using the search box.

Climate datasets

Has expert guidance
Argo float locations July 30, 2025 Argo Ocean Temperature and Salinity Profiles

  • Years of record

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Argo is an array of over 4100 profiling floats distributed almost uniformly across the global oceans. First deployed in 2000, Argo floats provide temperature and…

Main variables and Earth System components

Ocean Salinity Sub Surface Salinity Sub Surface Temperature

    • Timestep

    • Monthly, Weekly

    • Collections

    • N/A
AMOC Observing Systems Observations of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC)

  • Years of record

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The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is comprised of a series of northward surface currents and southward currents at depth in the Atlantic Basin. It is a…

Main variables and Earth System components

Ocean

    • Formats

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    • Timestep

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    • Domain

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    • Collections

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HadIOD: Met Office-Hadley Centre Integrated Ocean Database HadIOD: Met Office-Hadley Centre Integrated Ocean Database

  • Years of record

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HadIOD (Met Office Hadley Centre Integrated Ocean Database) is a global database of in situ ocean temperature and salinity observations, spanning 1850-present on a daily…

Main variables and Earth System components

Ocean Salinity SST - sea surface temperature Sub Surface Temperature

    • Timestep

    • Daily, Monthly

    • Collections

    • N/A
EN4 subsurface temperature and salinity for the global oceans EN4 subsurface temperature and salinity for the global oceans

  • Years of record

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EN4 is a subsurface temperature and salinity dataset for the global oceans, spanning 1900 to present at a monthly timestep. It includes two types of data products: (1) a…

Main variables and Earth System components

Ocean potential temperature Sub Surface Salinity Sub Surface Temperature Sub-surface data

    • Timestep

    • Monthly

    • Collections

    • N/A
Ocean temperature analysis and heat content estimate from Institute of Atmospheric Physics Ocean temperature analysis and heat content estimate from Institute of Atmospheric Physics

  • Years of record

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The Institute of Atmospheric Physics (IAP) ocean temperature analysis features global coverage of the oceans, at 1° x1° horizontal resolution on 41 vertical levels from 1-…

Main variables and Earth System components

Ocean Ocean Heat Content Sea Level Sub Surface Temperature
World Ocean Atlas 2013 (WOA13) World Ocean Atlas 2013 (WOA13)

  • Years of record

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The World Ocean Atlas (WOA) is a set of climatological mean, gridded fields of oceanographic variables based on in-situ measurements from a wide variety of sources. …

Main variables and Earth System components

Ocean Dissolved Oxygen phosphate potential temperature silicate SST - sea surface temperature Sub Surface Salinity Sub Surface Temperature Sub-surface data
COBE North Pacific Comparison SST Data: COBEv3: Centennial in situ Observation-Based Estimates Version 3

  • Years of record

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The Centennial in situ Observation-Based Estimates of Sea Surface Temperature version 3 (COBE-SST3) is a SST analysis produced by the Japanese Meteorological Agency (JMA).…

Main variables and Earth System components

Ocean SST - sea surface temperature

    • Timestep

    • Daily, Monthly

    • Collections

    • N/A
CARINA: Carbon in the North Altantic CARINA: Carbon in the North Altantic

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The CARINA (CARbon dioxide IN the Atlantic Ocean) data synthesis project is an international collaborative effort of the EU IP CARBOOCEAN, and US partners. It has produced…

Main variables and Earth System components

Ocean CO2: CarbonDioxide

  • Experts contributing reviews

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Meridional Modes and their indices Meridional Modes and their indices

  • Years of record

  • N/A

In each of the world’s tropical ocean basins, year-to-year climate variability is primarily governed by fluctuations in the zonal sea surface temperature (SST) gradient and…

Main variables and Earth System components

Atmosphere Wind Ocean SST - sea surface temperature
Atlantic Multi-decadal Oscillation (AMO) Atlantic Multi-decadal Oscillation (AMO) and Atlantic Multidecadal Variability (AMV)

  • Years of record

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The Atlantic Multi-decadal Oscillation (AMO) has been identified as a coherent mode of natural variability occurring in the North Atlantic Ocean with an estimated period of…

Main variables and Earth System components

Ocean SST - sea surface temperature