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Full catalog/PACE_OCI_L3M_POC
PACE_OCI_L3M_POC·v3.1·dataset

Carbon in tiny ocean particles (PACE)

PACE OCI Level-3 Global Mapped Particulate Organic Carbon (POC) Data, version 3.1
ocean NASA OB_CLOUD Level 3 active netCDF-4
In plain English

What it measures. Maps of how much carbon is held in tiny organic particles floating near the ocean surface (particulate organic carbon).

How it's made. Calculated from the color of light reflected off the ocean as measured by the OCI instrument on the PACE satellite, then mapped globally.

How & where you'd use it. Used to estimate how much carbon the surface ocean holds and how it moves, supporting ocean biology, chemistry, and carbon-cycle studies.

What's measured

Oceans › Ocean Chemistry › Organic CarbonOCEANS › OCEAN CHEMISTRY › CARBONOCEANS › OCEAN OPTICS

Coverage & cadence

  • Time span2024-03-05 → ongoing
  • Measured byPACE (OCI)
  • Processing levelLevel 3
  • Spatial extent-180, -90, 180, 90
  • FormatsnetCDF-4
  • StatusACTIVE

What you can do with it

  • Watch sea-surface temperature and marine heatwaves
  • Spot algal blooms and ocean-colour shifts
  • Support fisheries and coastal monitoring
Official description

The Particulate Organic Carbon (POC) data suite includes product of particulate organic carbon concentration from ocean-color reflectance. POC is widely used to quantify surface carbon stocks, support biogeochemical and export-flux studies, and provide ecological context alongside chlor_a, bbp, Kd_490, and SST. Geophysical variables in this suite include: - poc - Particulate Organic Carbon (mg C m^-3), Stramski et al. 2022

Get the data

pace_oci_l3m_poc_access.py
import earthaccess
earthaccess.login(strategy="netrc")          # free Earthdata Login

results = earthaccess.search_data(
    short_name="PACE_OCI_L3M_POC",
    version="3.1",
    bounding_box=(-122.5, 37.2, -121.8, 37.9),  # your area (W,S,E,N)
    temporal=("2024-01-01", "2024-12-31"),       # your dates
)
files = earthaccess.open(results)   # stream straight from OB_CLOUD
Browsing CMR needs no login. Downloading or streaming bytes needs a free Earthdata Login + the earthaccess package.