CoAuthors

Donald Richardson (Columbus Technologies, Inc., United States); Alejandro Egido (NOAA/NESDIS/STAR, United States); Yongsheng Zhang (NOAA/NESDIS/NCEI, United States); Eric Leuliette (NOAA/NESDIS/STAR, United States)

The interagency Jason-2 and Jason-3 missions measure sea surface height, wind speed, and significant wave height to help track global sea level rise, ocean currents, and upper ocean heat content. Four partner agencies share mission responsibilities: the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), the Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES), and the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT). NOAA’s roles include satellite command and control, operational data processing, operational data distribution, and archive of data and processing software. NOAA’s Environmental Satellite Processing Center (ESPC) generates Jason-2 and Jason-3 Operational Geophysical Data Record (OGDR) products. ESPC distributes OGDRs in near real time (within 3-5 hours of observation) in NetCDF format via their Data Distribution Server, and in BUFR format via the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) gateway. All Jason-2 and Jason-3 mission data are archived by NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI, formerly known as National Oceanographic Data Center) and the Comprehensive Large Array-data Stewardship System (CLASS). The OGDRs, CNES-derived interim Geophysical Data Records (IGDRs), and the final science-quality Geophysical Data Records (GDRs), all in NetCDF, are made available by traditional FTP as well as through modern interoperable data services (see https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/SatelliteData/jason/ and https://www.class.ncdc.noaa.gov/saa/products/welcome for more information). Jason-2 and Jason-3 geophysical data record products are used for ocean nowcasting and forecasting, assimilation into global and region models, hazard monitoring, and hurricane intensification forecasts. Additional product details and data access information are available at http://www.ospo.noaa.gov/Products/ocean/ssheight.html.