Sea Surface Temperature

Temperature of the water mass in the first few meters of thickness at the ocean surface, measured with the help of buoys or from oceanographic research vessels or other vessels, and also the equivalent temperature measured by certain satellites, although in this case for a much smaller fraction of the sea surface (less than one millimeter in the case of measurements taken with sensors operating in the infrared spectral range, and on the order of a centimeter in the case of those operating in microwaves). Internationally, it is known by the acronym SST and is a variable of great meteorological interest, particularly in the tropics. For example, the SST largely dictates the evolution of tropical cyclones. When a hurricane moves through an area of somewhat warmer waters, it tends to strengthen, moving up in category.