S-MODE L2 Position Data from Surface Drifters Version 1

This dataset contains in-situ position data from surface drifters from the Sub-Mesoscale Ocean Dynamics Experiment (S-MODE) conducted approximately 300 km offshore of San Francisco during a pilot campaign over two weeks in October 2021, and two intensive operating periods (IOPs) in Fall 2022 and Spring 2023. S-MODE aims to understand how ocean dynamics acting on short spatial scales influence the vertical exchange of physical and biological variables in the ocean. Drifting buoys were deployed from the research vessels and configured to nominally report positions every five minutes. Drifters deployed were a mixture of CARTHE and Microstar types. CARTHE drifters are drogued at 40 cm depth and measure the average horizontal velocity of currents in the upper 60 cm of the ocean (Novelli et al., 2017). Microstar drifters are drogued at 1 m depth and measure the average horizontal velocity of ocean currents between 0.4 m and 1.6 m depth (Ohlmann et al., 2005). See the S-MODE Data Submission Report sections 2.3.2.2, 2.4.2.2 and 2.5.2.3 for more information. Tracking and telemetry of the drifters is done by Pacific Gyre, Inc. The data are available in netCDF format with a dimension of time.

Novelli, G., C. M. Guigand, C. Cousin, E. H. Ryan, N. J. M. Laxague, H. Dai, B. K. Haus, and T. M. Özgökmen, 2017: A Biodegradable Surface Drifter for Ocean Sampling on a Massive Scale. J. Atmos. Oceanic Technol., 34, 2509–2532, https://doi.org/10.1175/JTECH-D-17-0055.1.

Ohlmann, J. C., P. F. White, A. L. Sybrandy, and P. P. Niiler, 2005: GPS–Cellular Drifter Technology for Coastal Ocean Observing Systems. J. Atmos. Oceanic Technol., 22, 1381–1388, https://doi.org/10.1175/JTECH1786.1.

Westbrook, E., Bingham, F. M., Brodnitz, S., Farrar, J. T., Rodriguez, E., & Zappa, C., (2024). Submesoscale Ocean Dynamics Experiment (S-MODE) Data Submission Report. Technical Report. Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, WHOI-2024-03, https://doi.org/10.1575/1912/69362

Data and Resources

Additional Info

Field Value
Maintainer Earthdata Forum
Last Updated March 30, 2026, 23:41 (UTC)
Created April 1, 2025, 18:35 (UTC)
accessLevel public
bureauCode {026:00}
catalog_conformsTo https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema
harvest_object_id 34d8e93a-33cc-4ce7-a1bc-14669660649a
harvest_source_id b99e41c6-fe79-4c19-bbc3-9b6c8111bfac
harvest_source_title Science Discovery Engine
identifier 10.5067/SMODE-DRIFT
license https://www.usa.gov/government-works
modified 2026-03-23T22:16:03Z
programCode {026:000}
publisher NASA/JPL/PODAAC
resource-type Dataset
source_datajson_identifier true
source_hash 178cba026a8813cb629f8e0524a24afca25f3539227de5a148276cfe5f86657c
source_schema_version 1.1
spatial [[{"NorthBoundingCoordinate":38.1,"WestBoundingCoordinate":-125.4,"EastBoundingCoordinate":-122.9,"SouthBoundingCoordinate":36.3}],"CARTESIAN"]
temporal 2021-10-21/2023-12-31
theme {"Earth Science"}