CoastWatch operational mapped AVHRR imagery

A fully operational capability for the mapping of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) data was achieved in the fall of 1992. This capability is being used to provide mapped imagery twice daily in near real-time from the AVHRR on the polar-orbiting NOAA-11 satellite. Current products include sea surface temperature (SST), infrared, and visible channel imagery at full and reduced resolution for the U.S. East Coast, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean and Great Lakes. Using available interactive workstation software, the visible channel images can be used to calculate relative turbidity in estuaries and near-shore regions with high sediment load. Future products being implemented include the addition of (1) cloud mask imagery, and (2) ocean reflectance imagery for more efficient turbidity product production. These images are being produced in support of NOAA CoastWatch, an activity of the NOAA Coastal Ocean Program. Distributed via CoastWatch Regional Sites around the country and the National Oceanographic Data Center, these products are available to government resource managers and university researchers who have signed access agreements with CoastWatch.