International Comprehensive Ocean-Atmosphere Data Set (ICOADS) Release 2.5, Individual Observations 

This dataset is superseded by ICOADS Release 3, Individual Observations.

The International Comprehensive Ocean-Atmosphere Data Set (ICOADS) is a global ocean marine meteorological and surface ocean dataset.  It is formed by merging many national and international data sources that contain measurements and visual observations from ships (merchant, navy, research), moored and drifting buoys, coastal stations, and other marine platforms.  Each report contains individual observations of meteorological and oceanographic variables, such as sea surface and air temperatures, wind, pressure, humidity, and cloudiness.  The coverage is global and sampling density varies depending on date and geographic position relative to shipping routes and ocean observing systems.
All three U.S. ICOADS partners (NOAA/ESRL, NOAA/NCDC, NCAR) offer various data
access and format options.  To review all available options see the
ICOADS website.

IMPORTANT: The time period of data available is defined in two segments.

ICOADS Release 2.5 covers 1662 through 2007
All data following the Release 2.5 end date is based exclusively on real-time GTS data with minimal quality control.  These data should be considered preliminary and will be subject to change in new Releases of ICOADS

To Access Resource:

Questions? Email Resource Support Contact:

  • datahelp@ucar.edu

Temporal Range

  • Begin:  1662-10-15
    End:  2022-03-31

Keywords

Resource Type dataset
Temporal Range Begin 1662-10-15
Temporal Range End 2022-03-31
Temporal Resolution N/A
Bounding Box North Lat N/A
Bounding Box South Lat N/A
Bounding Box West Long N/A
Bounding Box East Long N/A
Spatial Representation N/A
Spatial Resolution N/A
Related Links

Related Resource #1 : ICOADS Project Website

Related Resource #2 : RECLAIM Project Website
Additional Information N/A
Resource Format NOAA IMMA
Standardized Resource Format OTHER
Asset Size 224758.795 MB
Legal Constraints

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
Access Constraints None
Software Implementation Language N/A

Resource Support Name N/A
Resource Support Email datahelp@ucar.edu
Resource Support Organization N/A
Distributor NSF NCAR Geoscience Data Exchange
Metadata Contact Name N/A
Metadata Contact Email datahelp@ucar.edu
Metadata Contact Organization NSF NCAR Geoscience Data Exchange

Author National Climatic Data Center, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
Ocean Climate Laboratory, National Oceanographic Data Center, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
Met Office, Ministry of Defence, United Kingdom
Research Data Archive, Computational and Information Systems Laboratory, National Center for Atmospheric Research, University Corporation for Atmospheric Research
Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, OAR, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado
Deutscher Wetterdienst (German Meteorological Service), Germany
World Meteorological Organization, United Nations
TRITON Office, Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, Japan
Integrated Science Data Management, Fisheries and Oceans, Canada
National Oceanography Centre, University of Southampton
Center for Ocean-Atmospheric Prediction Studies, Florida State University
Physical Sciences Laboratory, Earth System Research Laboratory, OAR, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
National Data Buoy Center, National Weather Service, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
National Centers for Environmental Prediction, National Weather Service, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
Publisher NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research
Publication Date 1984-02-16
Digital Object Identifier (DOI) https://doi.org/10.5065/D6H70CSV
Alternate Identifier d540000
Resource Version N/A
Topic Category oceans
Progress onGoing
Metadata Date 2025-10-09T01:26:11Z
Metadata Record Identifier edu.ucar.gdex::d540000
Metadata Language eng; USA
Suggested Citation National Climatic Data Center, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce, Ocean Climate Laboratory, National Oceanographic Data Center, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce, Met Office, Ministry of Defence, United Kingdom, Research Data Archive, Computational and Information Systems Laboratory, National Center for Atmospheric Research, University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, OAR, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce, Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado, Deutscher Wetterdienst (German Meteorological Service), Germany, World Meteorological Organization, United Nations, TRITON Office, Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, Japan, Integrated Science Data Management, Fisheries and Oceans, Canada, National Oceanography Centre, University of Southampton, Center for Ocean-Atmospheric Prediction Studies, Florida State University, Physical Sciences Laboratory, Earth System Research Laboratory, OAR, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce, National Data Buoy Center, National Weather Service, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce, National Centers for Environmental Prediction, National Weather Service, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce. (1984). International Comprehensive Ocean-Atmosphere Data Set (ICOADS) Release 2.5, Individual Observations. NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research. https://doi.org/10.5065/D6H70CSV. Accessed 10 October 2025.

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