The ocean covers nearly 71% of Earth’s surface and is the largest solar energy collector. As a result, it plays an important role in maintaining the global energy balance and drives atmospheric processes. The heat exchange process across the ocean surface is represented by the ocean heat budget. The ocean heat budget consists of ocean heat gains and losses, including shortwave radiation from the Sun, long-wave radiation from the ocean, latent heat flux, sensible heat flux, and heat transfer by currents.

Ocean surface heat fluxes play a significant role in the generation and evolution of atmospheric phenomena. Estimates of surface heat flux largely come from in-situ measurements from buoys and flux towers, which are limited in temporal and spatial coverage. Satellite missions attempt to fill these gaps through indirect measurements of wind speed, temperature, and humidity to derive sensible and latent heat fluxes. The Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) in particular overcomes many remote sensing limitations over the tropical and subtropical oceans by providing improved coverage in nearly all weather conditions.

NASA has datasets from CYGNSS and other missions and projects that researchers can use to explore how much heat the oceans absorb and release and its influence on ocean function and health, and the global climate.