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Full catalog/SeaWiFS_L1_GAC
SeaWiFS_L1_GAC·v2·dataset

Raw ocean color imagery (SeaWiFS, global coverage)

OrbView-2 SeaWiFS Level-1A Global Area Coverage (GAC) Data, version 2
ocean NASA OB_CLOUD Level 1 netCDF-4
In plain English

What it measures. Raw, full-resolution ocean-color instrument data that has been time-stamped and tagged with supporting information like calibration coefficients and pointing details, but not yet turned into finished geophysical measurements.

How it's made. These are the earliest reconstructed, unprocessed readings from the SeaWiFS instrument on the OrbView-2 satellite, annotated with the extras needed for later processing.

How & where you'd use it. A raw building-block input; most people use the finished ocean-color products derived from it rather than this early-stage data directly.

What's measured

Oceans › Ocean Optics › Ocean Color

Coverage & cadence

  • Time span1997-09-04 → 2010-12-11
  • Measured byOrbView-2 (SeaWiFS)
  • Processing levelLevel 1
  • Spatial extent-180, -90, 180, 90
  • FormatsnetCDF-4
  • StatusCOMPLETE

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

Level 1A (L1A) data are reconstructed, unprocessed instrument data at full resolution, time-referenced, and annotated with ancillary information. This ancillary information can include radiometric and geometric calibration coefficients and georeferencing parameters (e.g., platform ephemeris).

Get the data

seawifs_l1_gac_access.py
import earthaccess
earthaccess.login(strategy="netrc")          # free Earthdata Login

results = earthaccess.search_data(
    short_name="SeaWiFS_L1_GAC",
    version="2",
    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.