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GCRIOceans and CoastsIn development
Methods and uncertainty

Methods and uncertainty

The methods Oceans and Coasts relies on, the assumptions they carry and the limits of what they can show.

Oceans and CoastsRegister
  1. 01FieldsOceans and coasts, Climate and hazards, Biodiversity and nature
  2. 02STEM methods7 canonical methods applied
  3. 03Topics8 subject pages
  4. 04Counterparts7 platforms in shared fields
  5. 05PublisherThe Global Centre for Risk and Innovation

GCRI · In development · service level R0

01In brief

The short answer.

The Oceans and Coasts methods page sets out the methods the platform relies on, among them ocean and coastal science, Earth observation and remote sensing, and extreme value theory and tail risk, with their assumptions, validation and limits. Each analysis lists its assumptions and data, reports ranges and confidence beside central estimates, is checked against observations or other models, and states what it cannot show.

02Canvas

Draft to published version.

Canvas · draft to published versionDesign, not a record
Methods and uncertainty: from a source to a labelled evidence recordA source is registered with its licence and steward, checked for quality and coverage, labelled by evidence class, versioned and published with a passport; corrections create a new version. Design of the process, not a record of a run.

Fig.How a finding is reviewed before it is published. Design, not a record.

03Geography

Ocean state in Pacific Island states.

Marine heat, sea surface temperature, chlorophyll and sea ice from satellite analyses, framed on Pacific Island states; each layer is a dated NASA product.

The interactive map needs JavaScript; the layer list and sources are below.

Layers 1

Ocean state

Latest available

NASA GIBS / EOSDIS · ASTER GDEM (METI, NASA) · Natural Earth

Loading the latest NASA imagery.

Drag to move. Ctrl or ⌘ and scroll, pinch or the buttons to zoom; hover for the values under the pointer; reset returns to the region.

Marine heat, sea surface temperature, chlorophyll and sea ice from satellite analyses, framed on Pacific Island states.Satellite and model products as NASA publishes them, each with its own date; indicators, not assessments of any place; claim ceiling INTEGRATED.

Data: NASA GIBS · ASTER GDEM · Natural EarthSources and licences

  • We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA's Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA's Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS). Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • GHRSST Level 4 MUR analyses, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory; distributed by the NASA Physical Oceanography DAAC (PO.DAAC); imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • MODIS Aqua ocean colour, NASA Ocean Biology Processing Group; distributed by the NASA Ocean Biology DAAC (OB.DAAC); imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • VIIRS near-real-time products (flood, land surface temperature, snow cover, corrected reflectance), NASA LANCE; imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • ASTER GDEM is a product of METI and NASA (ASTER Global Digital Elevation Model V003, NASA LP DAAC); imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • Made with Natural Earth. Free vector and raster map data @ naturalearthdata.com. Public domain
  • Globe: MapLibre GL JS 6.9.1, BSD-3-Clause, © MapLibre contributors.

Layers and dates

  • Sea surface temperature anomaly: GHRSST MUR25, NASA JPL PO.DAAC · 12 Oct 2026
  • Sea surface temperature: GHRSST MUR, NASA JPL PO.DAAC · 12 Oct 2026
  • Ocean chlorophyll-a concentration: MODIS Aqua ocean colour, NASA OB.DAAC · 12 Oct 2026
  • Sea ice concentration: GHRSST MUR, NASA JPL PO.DAAC · 12 Oct 2026
  • True colour: VIIRS NOAA-20 corrected reflectance, NASA LANCE · 13 Oct 2026

06Uncertainty

Where uncertainty in ocean and coastal analysis comes from, and how it is shown.

SourceWhy it matters hereHow it is reported
Ice-sheet contributionDominates the upper range of sea-level riseLikely range and high-end scenarios shown separately
Vertical land motionCan exceed sea-level rise locallyTide-gauge and satellite data combined, with datum stated
Storm surge statisticsShort records for extremesReturn levels with intervals
Ecosystem responseThresholds uncertainRanges and observed events

Sea-level figures always state the datum, baseline period and scenario.

07Uncertainty

How uncertainty is reported.

  1. 01

    State assumptions

    Each analysis lists its assumptions and the data it depends on.

  2. 02

    Quantify where possible

    Ranges and confidence are reported alongside central estimates.

  3. 03

    Validate and compare

    Models are checked against observations and, where possible, against other models.

  4. 04

    Publish limits

    What an analysis cannot show is stated beside what it can.

08Key terms

Terms used on this page.

Each term as this page uses it. Where a standard-setting body defines the term, the wording follows that body.

TermDefinition
Uncertainty quantificationCharacterising and propagating the uncertainties in a model to state confidence in its outputs.
Sensitivity analysisRepeating an analysis under different assumptions to show how much the result depends on them.
Model validationComparing model predictions with independent observations to judge fitness for a stated use.
Ocean and coastal scienceOcean science studies the physics, chemistry, biology and geology of the oceans and coasts.
09Sources

Where this page's references lead.

The bodies and documents this page is read against. Status and editions change; each link goes to the issuing body.

10Questions

Questions and answers.

Are the methods open?
Method descriptions are public on the STEM Commons. Code and data follow their own licences and access terms, listed in the source register.
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