Climate.gov Data Snapshots: Ocean Heat Content - Seasonal Difference from Average
Principal Investigator(s): View help for Principal Investigator(s) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Version: View help for Version V2
| Name | File Type | Size | Last Modified |
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| data | 06/24/2025 08:21:PM | ||
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application/pdf | 2.9 MB | 06/17/2025 04:41:PM |
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application/pdf | 1.4 MB | 06/17/2025 04:41:PM |
Project Citation:
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Climate.gov Data Snapshots: Ocean Heat Content - Seasonal Difference from Average. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2025-06-24. https://doi.org/10.3886/E233223V2
Project Description
Project Title:
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Climate.gov Data Snapshots: Ocean Heat Content - Seasonal Difference from Average
Summary:
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This upload includes two additional files:
* Ocean Heat Content - Seasonal Difference from Averge _NOAA Climate.gov.pdf is a screenshot of the main Climate.gov site for these snapshots (https://www.climate.gov/maps-data/data-snapshots/data-source/ocean-heat-content-seasonal-difference-average)
* Cimate_gov_ Data Snapshots.pdf is a screenshot of the data download page for the full-resolution files.
Q: How much heat energy is being stored in Earth’s ocean?
A: Colors
on the map show where instruments detected more or less heat energy in
the top 2,300 feet of water than the long-term average annual heat
content. Orange areas show where heat content was higher than the
long-term average. Blue areas show where heat content was lower than the
long-term average. The darker the shade of blue or orange, the larger
the heat-content difference from the long-term average.
Q: Where do these measurements come from?
A: Oceanographers
use a range of temperature-sensing instruments to measure heat energy
in the ocean. Among them is a fleet of more than 3,000 robotic “floats”
that measure ocean temperature in the top 2,300 feet of water.
Scientists constantly compare data from floats, probes, and
Conductivity-Temperature-Depth (CTD) sensors to verify that the values
they produce make sense.
Q: What do the colors mean?
A: Colors
show the relative differences in average heat energy in the top 2,300
feet of the ocean, computed for each year, compared to long-term average
annual heat content. The long-term temperature climatology is the
average of five “decadal” climatologies calculated for 1955-1964,
1965-1974, 1975-1984, 1985-1994, and 1995-2006. Orange and blue areas
show where the upper ocean’s heat storage rose or fell by up to 3
gigajoules (109 joules) per square meter at the surface. Areas where heat content was close to the long-term average are white.
Q: Why do these data matter?
A: The
ocean’s ability to store and release heat over long periods of time
gives it a central role in stabilizing Earth’s climate system.
Short-term variations in heat content due to natural climate patterns
like El Niño influence regional climates, tropical cyclones, and marine
life, including coral reefs and fisheries. As the ocean takes up more
heat due to global warming, water temperatures rise, causing it to
increase in volume, raising global sea level around the world. Warming
ocean waters also have major implications for marine ecosystems, melting
ice caps, and precipitation patterns.
Q: How did you produce these snapshots?
A: Data
Snapshots are derivatives of existing data products. To meet the needs
of a broad audience, we present the same data as current products in a
simplified visual style. This set of snapshots is based on data from
NOAA’s Ocean Climate Laboratory.
To produce the maps for Data Snapshots, we run a script that accesses
the source data, applies a custom color palette, and assembles them on a
prepared base map.
References
Levitus, S., et al. (2012), World ocean heat
content and thermosteric sea level change (0–2000 m), 1955–2010,
Geophys. Res. Lett., 39, L10603.
* Ocean Heat Content - Seasonal Difference from Averge _NOAA Climate.gov.pdf is a screenshot of the main Climate.gov site for these snapshots (https://www.climate.gov/maps-data/data-snapshots/data-source/ocean-heat-content-seasonal-difference-average)
* Cimate_gov_ Data Snapshots.pdf is a screenshot of the data download page for the full-resolution files.
Original Distribution URL:
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https://www.climate.gov/data/Ocean--ThreeMonth--Difference-from-average-Heat-Content--Global/
Scope of Project
Subject Terms:
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climate;
climate change;
oceans;
sea temperature
Geographic Coverage:
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Global
Time Period(s):
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1/2000 – 10/2024 (Seasonal, three-month images from 2000 to present)
Data Type(s):
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images: photographs, drawings, graphical representations
Collection Notes:
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Data is divided in to folders by image resolution -- full size (zip), kml (zip), broadcast (png), small (png), and large (png). Occasionally there may be one image missing in a particular size but available in another size.
Data downloaded from climate.gov 6/15/2025 - 6/16/2025 (small, large, and full resolution) and 6/21/2025 (others).
Data downloaded from climate.gov 6/15/2025 - 6/16/2025 (small, large, and full resolution) and 6/21/2025 (others).
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