Additional FREE online data resources for coral reef managers

Near-real-time remote sensing datasets


Ocean Color
NASA Ocean Color Chlorophyll
NASA Global, milligrams chl-a per cubic meter. 4km and 9km. Daily to yearly updates.
Ocean Color Chlorophyll
NOAA CoastWatch Global, various satellites, milligrams chl-a per cubic meter. 9km. Daily updates.

Ocean Surface Winds
Ocean Winds Ocean Surface Winds
NOAA STAR Global wind speed and direction, reported in knots. 12.5km. Daily updates.
Ocean Winds Ocean Surface Winds
NASA JPL PO.DAAC Global winds, meters per second. 12.5km to 1-degree. Daily updates.


True-color Imagery
True-color Images Near-real-time images
NOAA CoastWatch US Coast. 250m resolution. Daily updates.

Global Precipitation
NOAA CPC Precipitation Analysis Precipitation analysis
NOAA CPC Blended satellite and in situ data, millimeters per day. Binary. 2.5-degree. 5-day means.
Global Precipitation Measurement Global precipitation
NASA GPM Microwave global rainfall data, 0.5-millimeters per hour. 0.1-degree. 30-minute to 1-month updates. 2014-present.
TRMM Product 2B31 Tropical/subtropical precipitation
NASA/JAXA TRMM Microwave rainfall data, millimeters per hour. 0.05-degree. 3-hour to 1-week updates. 1997-2015.

Sea Surface Topography
Sea Surface Topography Sea surface topography
NASA JPL PO.DAAC Global sea surface height anomaly, in millimeters. Binary format. 2-hour to 1-month updates.
Sea Surface Topography Sea surface topography
Naval Research Lab From several satellites, in centimeters or meters. Daily updates.

Cloud Cover
cloud composite Global Cloud Montage
U. of Wisconsin, SSEC Global. GIF images and animations. Updated every 6 hours.

Ultraviolet Radiation
True-color Images UV Radiation
NASA TOMS Global. 1 x 1.25 degree (V008), daily. Data from 1978 - present.

Near-real-time in situ datasets
ReefBase NOAA ICON stations
In situ, near-real-time data (salinity, wind, light, etc.) for several Caribbean reefs.
CRED moorings NOAA CRED instruments
In situ, near-real-time data (temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, etc.) for several Pacific reefs.
NDBC NOAA buoy data
Near-real-time ocean and atmosphere conditions from data buoys around the world.
ARGO profilers ARGO profiling floats
Open-ocean temperature and salinity profiles from floating buoys around the world.
Ocean Surface Currents Ocean Surface Currents
NOAA NCEI Global in situ ocean currents data. Diverse instruments, collection protocols, processing methods, and data storage formats.

Forecasts
SeaWiFS bathymetry SST anomaly forecasts (CFSv2)
Monthly and three-month outlooks of SST anomalies from the NOAA NCEP coupled forecast system model version 2 (CFSv2).
ReefBase NOAA ENSO forecast
NOAA CPC current conditions for its El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) system.
CPC-IRI_official_enso CPC/IRI Official ENSO forecast
CPC/IRI official probabilistic ENSO forecast, updated during the first half of each month.
IRI-CPC_model_enso IRI/CPC Regression ENSO forecast
IRI/CPC objective, model-based probabilistic ENSO forecast, updated near or just after the middle of the month.

Other useful data resources online

Satellite Imagery
Landsat Photos from Landsat
U. of Maryland, GLCF Landsat imagery. Global, 30m resolution images.
ReefBase Photos from Landsat
NASA Millennium Coral Reefs Landsat archive. Global, 30m resolution images of reefs.

Benthic Habitat Mapping
ReefBase Benthic habitat maps
NOAA NCCOS maps for U.S. waters only.

Coral Reef Bathymetry
PIBHMC NOAA Bathymetry (Pacific)
NOAA PIFSC/PIBHMC bathymetry data for coral reefs surveyed at ~50 U.S. Pacific islands and atolls.
SeaWiFS bathymetry NASA Bathymetry
Experimental, produced by NASA from 1km SeaWiFS satellite imagery. Images and PGM raster format.

Additional Human Stressors
SeaWiFS bathymetry Nighttime Lights Annual Composites
NOAA NCEI (formerly NGDC) Reef stressors estimated from nighttime lights observed from DMSP satellites.

Coral Reef Information Systems
ReefBase ReefBase
Publications, threats, laws, bleaching, diseases, etc. for global coral reefs.
ReefBase Giovanni
NASA Goddard Online tool to visualize, analyze, and export many NASA remote sensing datasets.
ReefBase NOAA's CoRIS
A single point of access to NOAA coral reef ecosystem information and data products.

About this webpage
This page organizes additional data resources we hope will be of use to coral reef managers and researchers. We focus on near-real-time global information that is freely available over the web. This work was supported by NOAA, and by the World Bank Coral Reef Targeted Research and Capacity Building for Management Project.