Heron Island, Great Barrier Reef, Sea Surface Temperature Time Series Charts - Pathfinder, NOAA/NASA AVHRR Oceans SST

Frequently-anticipated questions:

• What does this data set describe?
  1. How should this data set be cited?
  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?
  3. What does it look like?
  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?
  5. What is the general form of this data set?
  6. How does the data set represent geographic features?
  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?
• Who produced the data set?
  1. Who are the originators of the data set?
  2. Who also contributed to the data set?
  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
• Why was the data set created?
• How was the data set created?
  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?
  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?
  3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?
• How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?
  1. How well have the observations been checked?
  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?
  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?
  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?
  5. How consistent are the relationships among the data, including topology?
• How can someone get a copy of the data set?
  1. Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?
  2. Who distributes the data?
  3. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?
  4. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?
  5. How can I download or order the data?
• Who wrote the metadata?

What does this data set describe?

1. How should this data set be cited?

   NOAA Coral Reef Watch Program NOAA National Environmental Satellite Data and Information Service, 20040505, Heron Island, Great Barrier Reef, Sea Surface Temperature Time Series Charts - Pathfinder, NOAA/NASA AVHRR Oceans SST: NOAA Coral Reef Watch Program, Camp Springs, Maryland, USA.

   Online Links:

   • <http://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/archive/sst_series_24reefspath.html>
   • <http://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/archive/sst_series_heron_path.html>

2. What geographic area does the data set cover?

   West_Bounding_Coordinate: 151.25

   East_Bounding_Coordinate: 151.75

   North_Bounding_Coordinate: -23.25

   South_Bounding_Coordinate: -23.75

3. What does it look like?

4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?

   Beginning_Date: Jan-1985

   Ending_Date: Jun-2003

   Currentness_Reference: publication date

5. What is the general form of this data set?

   Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: PNG images

6. How does the data set represent geographic features?
   1. How are geographic features stored in the data set?

      Indirect_Spatial_Reference: location name

      This is a Point data set.

   2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?

7. How does the data set describe geographic features?

Who produced the data set?

1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)
   • NOAA Coral Reef Watch Program NOAA National Environmental Satellite Data and Information Service

2. Who also contributed to the data set?

3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
   NOAA Coral Reef Watch Program
   c/o Alan E. Strong, NOAA Coral Reef Watch Program Manager
   NOAA E/RA3, Room 601, 5200 Auth Road
   Camp Springs, Maryland 20746
   USA
   

   301-763-8102 ext 170 (voice)
   301-763-8572 (FAX)
   Alan.E.Strong@noaa.gov
   

Why was the data set created?

The AVHRR-SSTs and SST time series at selected locations, including Heron Island GBR, AU were primarily developed for NOAA's Coral Reef Watch Program from satellite data for both monitoring and assessment of coral bleaching. Other monitoring and assessment products include the SST anomalies, coral bleaching HotSpots, Degree Heating Weeks, Tropical Coral Bleaching Indices.

How was the data set created?

1. From what previous works were the data drawn?

   NOAA/NASA AVHRR Oceans Pathfinder sea surface temperature data (source 1 of 1)

   project, NOAA/NASA Pathfinder , 20031020, NOAA/NASA AVHRR Oceans Pathfinder sea surface temperature data: NASA/JPL, NASA/JPL.

   Type_of_Source_Media: Digital

   Source_Contribution:

   The SST time series are extracted from this source data.

2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?

   Date: not complete (process 1 of 1)

   Users are referred to online documentation at <http://podaac.jpl.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/dcatalog/fam_summary.pl?sst+pfsst>

   Data sources used in this process:

   • NOAA/NASA AVHRR Oceans Pathfinder sea surface temperature data

3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?

How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?

1. How well have the observations been checked?

   Online documentation at <http://podaac.jpl.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/dcatalog/fam_summary.pl?sst+pfsst>

2. How accurate are the geographic locations?

   Users are referred to online documentation at <http://podaac.jpl.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/dcatalog/fam_summary.pl?sst+pfsst>

3. How accurate are the heights or depths?

   none

4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?

   Users are referred to online documentation at <http://podaac.jpl.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/dcatalog/fam_summary.pl?sst+pfsst>

5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?

   none

How can someone get a copy of the data set?

Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?

Access_Constraints: none

Use_Constraints:

Not intended for legal use. Data may contain inaccuracies due to clouded or mixed pixels.

1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)
   NOAA Coral Reef Watch Program
   c/o Alan E. Strong, NOAA Coral Reef Watch Program Manager
   NOAA E/RA3, Room 601, 5200 Auth Road
   Camp Springs, Maryland 20746
   USA
   

   301-763-8102 ext 170 (voice)
   301-763-8572 (FAX)
   Alan.E.Strong@noaa.gov
   

2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?

3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?

   NOAA makes no warranty regarding these data, expressed or implied, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty. NOAA cannot assume liability for any damages caused by any errors or omissions in these data, nor as a result of the failure of these data to function on a particular system.

4. How can I download or order the data?
   • Availability in digital form:

     Data format:	sea surface temperature in format PNG Size: 0.010
     Network links:	<http://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/archive/sst_series_heron_path.html>
     Media you can order:	CD-ROM (format none) Note: The PNG format is recognized by most graphics applications.

   • Cost to order the data: none

   • Special instructions:

     The product in PNG format may be downloaded from the Web site or obtained from the distributor.

Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:

Last modified: 12-Aug-2008

Metadata author:

NOAA Coral Reef Watch Program
c/o Alan E. Strong, NOAA Coral Reef Watch Program Manager
NOAA E/RA3, Room 601, 5200 Auth Road
Camp Springs, Maryland 20746
USA

301-763-8102 ext 170 (voice)
301-763-8572 (FAX)
Alan.E.Strong@noaa.gov

Metadata standard:

FGDC Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)