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Sea Ice Data Access and Tools
NASA has sea ice datasets that help researchers characterize the presence and extent of ice in the ocean. Access a range of data and data tools such as AppEEARS, Worldview, and Giovanni to make the most of sea ice data.
Sea Ice Datasets
| Dataset Sort descending | Version | Platform | Instrument | Temporal Extent | Spatial Extent | Spatial Resolution | Data Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ECCO Sea-Ice and Snow Concentration and Thickness - Monthly Mean 0.5 Degree (Version 4 Release 4) | V4r4 | MODELS, MITgcm | 1992-01-01 to 2018-01-01 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
0.5 Decimal Degrees x 0.5 Decimal Degrees | netCDF-4 | |
| ECCO Sea-Ice and Snow Concentration and Thickness - Monthly Mean llc90 Grid (Version 4 Release 4) | V4r4 | MODELS, MITgcm | 1992-01-01 to 2018-01-01 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
1 Decimal Degrees x 1 Decimal Degrees | netCDF-4 | |
| ECCO Sea-Ice and Snow Concentration and Thickness - Snapshot llc90 Grid (Version 4 Release 4) | V4r4 | MODELS, MITgcm | 1992-01-01 to 2018-01-01 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
1 Decimal Degrees x 1 Decimal Degrees | netCDF-4 | |
| ECCO Sea-Ice and Snow Horizontal Volume Fluxes - Daily Mean llc90 Grid (Version 4 Release 4) | V4r4 | MODELS, MITgcm | 1992-01-01 to 2018-01-01 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
1 Decimal Degrees x 1 Decimal Degrees | netCDF-4 | |
| ECCO Sea-Ice and Snow Horizontal Volume Fluxes - Monthly Mean llc90 Grid (Version 4 Release 4) | V4r4 | MODELS, MITgcm | 1992-01-01 to 2018-01-01 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
1 Decimal Degrees x 1 Decimal Degrees | netCDF-4 | |
| ECCO Sea-Ice Velocity - Daily Mean 0.5 Degree (Version 4 Release 4) | V4r4 | MODELS, MITgcm | 1992-01-01 to 2018-01-01 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
0.5 Decimal Degrees x 0.5 Decimal Degrees | netCDF-4 | |
| ECCO Sea-Ice Velocity - Daily Mean llc90 Grid (Version 4 Release 4) | V4r4 | MODELS, MITgcm | 1992-01-01 to 2018-01-01 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
1 Decimal Degrees x 1 Decimal Degrees | netCDF-4 | |
| ECCO Sea-Ice Velocity - Monthly Mean 0.5 Degree (Version 4 Release 4) | V4r4 | MODELS, MITgcm | 1992-01-01 to 2018-01-01 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
0.5 Decimal Degrees x 0.5 Decimal Degrees | netCDF-4 | |
| ECCO Sea-Ice Velocity - Monthly Mean llc90 Grid (Version 4 Release 4) | V4r4 | MODELS, MITgcm | 1992-01-01 to 2018-01-01 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
1 Decimal Degrees x 1 Decimal Degrees | netCDF-4 | |
| ECCO Sea-Ice Velocity - Snapshot llc90 Grid (Version 4 Release 4) | V4r4 | MODELS, MITgcm | 1992-01-01 to 2018-01-01 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
1 Decimal Degrees x 1 Decimal Degrees | netCDF-4 | |
| ERS-1 Gridded Level 3 Enhanced Resolution Sigma-0 from BYU | 1 | ERS-1 | AMI | 1992-01-01 to 1996-05-17 |
N: 88.2 S: -79.7 E: 180 W: -180 |
0.04 Decimal Degrees x 0.04 Decimal Degrees | RAW |
| ERS-1 Level 0 Product | 1 | ERS-1 | SAR | 1991-08-08 to 1997-09-29 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
||
| ERS-1 Level 1 Product | 1 | ERS-1 | SAR | 1991-08-08 to 1997-09-29 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
||
| ERS-2 Gridded Level 3 Enhanced Resolution Sigma-0 from BYU | 1 | ERS-2 | AMI | 1996-06-03 to 2001-12-30 |
N: 88.2 S: -79.7 E: 180 W: -180 |
0.04 Decimal Degrees x 0.04 Decimal Degrees | RAW |
| ERS-2 Level 0 Product | 1 | ERS-2 | SAR | 1995-10-01 to 2011-07-04 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
||
| ERS-2 Level 1 Product | 1 | ERS-2 | SAR | 1995-10-01 to 2011-07-04 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
||
| Glacial and Fast Ice Distributions in Southeast Greenland Fjords V001 | 1 | Aqua, LANDSAT-8, Sentinel-1A, Sentinel-1B, Sentinel-2A, Sentinel-2B, Terra | MODIS, OLI, C-SAR, Sentinel-2 MSI | 2015-01-01 to 2019-12-31 |
N: 70.009956 S: 60.286876 E: -22.410516 W: -44.199176 |
Shapefile, CSV, GeoPackage | |
| GLAS/ICESat L1B Global Elevation Data (HDF5) V034 | 034 | ICESat | ALTIMETERS, CD, GLAS, GPS, GPS Receiver, LA, PC | 2003-02-20 to 2009-10-11 |
N: 86 S: -86 E: 180 W: -180 |
60 Meters to 70 Meters x 60 Meters to 70 Meters | HDF5 |
| GLAS/ICESat L2 Global Antarctic and Greenland Ice Sheet Altimetry Data (HDF5) V034 | 034 | ICESat | ALTIMETERS, CD, GLAS, GPS, GPS Receiver, LA, PC | 2003-02-20 to 2009-10-11 |
N: 86 S: -86 E: 180 W: -180 |
60 Meters to 70 Meters x 60 Meters to 70 Meters | HDF |
| GLAS/ICESat L2 Global Land Surface Altimetry Data (HDF5) V034 | 034 | ICESat | ALTIMETERS, CD, GLAS, GPS, GPS Receiver, LA, PC | 2003-02-20 to 2009-10-11 |
N: 86 S: -86 E: 180 W: -180 |
60 Meters to 70 Meters x 60 Meters to 70 Meters | HDF |
| GLAS/ICESat L2 Ocean Altimetry Data (HDF5) V034 | 034 | ICESat | ALTIMETERS, CD, GLAS, GPS, GPS Receiver, LA, PC | 2003-02-20 to 2009-10-11 |
N: 86 S: -86 E: 180 W: -180 |
60 Meters to 70 Meters x 60 Meters to 70 Meters | HDF |
| GLAS/ICESat L2 Sea Ice Altimetry Data (HDF5) V034 | 034 | ICESat | ALTIMETERS, CD, GLAS, GPS, GPS Receiver, LA, PC | 2003-02-20 to 2009-10-11 |
N: 86 S: -86 E: 180 W: -180 |
60 Meters to 70 Meters x 60 Meters to 70 Meters | HDF |
| IceBridge Accumulation Radar L1B Geolocated Radar Echo Strength Profiles V002 | 2 | DC-8, P-3B | Accumulation Radar | 2013-03-21 to 2018-05-01 |
N: 90 S: 60 E: 180 W: -180 N: -53 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
netCDF-4, XML, JPEG | |
| IceBridge ATM L2 Icessn Elevation, Slope, and Roughness V002 | 2 | C-130, DC-8, G-V, HU-25A, HU-25C, P-3B, WP-3D ORION | ATM | 2009-03-31 to 2019-11-20 |
N: 90 S: 60 E: 180 W: -180 N: -53 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
ASCII | |
| IceBridge HiCARS 1 L2 Geolocated Ice Thickness V001 | 1 | BT-67, DHC-6 | HiCARS1 | 2009-01-02 to 2010-12-21 |
N: -53 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
XML, ASCII |
Featured Sea Ice Observation Method: ICESat-2
NASA's Ice, Cloud, and Land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) carries a laser altimeter scientists use to measure the elevation of ice sheets, glaciers, sea ice, and more in unprecedented, 3-D detail. The satellite also measures heights across Earth's temperate and tropical regions, and takes stock of the vegetation in forests worldwide.
Data from NASA’s ICESat-2 mission provide incredibly accurate measurements of Earth elevation change—and much more.
8 MIN READ
The five new datasets are the result of a joint effort by NASA’s Satellite Needs Working Group Management Office (SNWG MO), ICESat-2 team, and Land, Atmosphere Near real-time Capability for EOS (LANCE).
3 MIN READ
ATL24, a new space-based lidar product, provides bathymetry data that can be used to characterize nearshore habitats and create safer maritime transportation channels.
This is the first in a five-part webinar series to introduce NASA's Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation-2 (ICESat-2) platform and the platform's data, tools, and applications.
Frequently Asked Questions
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