'''DEFINITION''' The Mediterranean water mass formation rates are evaluated in 4 areas as defined in the Ocean State Report issue 2 (OSR2, von Schuckmann et al., 2018) section 3.4 (Simoncelli and Pinardi, 2018): (1) the Gulf of Lions for the Western Mediterranean Deep Waters (WMDW); (2) the Southern Adriatic Sea Pit for the Eastern Mediterranean Deep Waters (EMDW); (3) the Cretan Sea for Cretan Intermediate Waters (CIW) and Cretan Deep Waters (CDW); (4) the Rhodes Gyre, the area of formation of the so-called Levantine Intermediate Waters (LIW) and Levantine Deep Waters (LDW). Annual water mass formation rates have been computed using daily mixed layer depth estimates (density criteria Δσ = 0.01 kg/m3, 10 m reference level) considering the annual maximum volume of water above mixed layer depth with potential density within or higher the specific thresholds specified in Table 1 then divided by seconds per year. Annual mean values are provided using the Mediterranean 1/24o eddy resolving reanalysis (Escudier et al. 2020, 2021). Time spans from 1987 to the year preceding the current one [-1Y], operationally extended yearly. '''CONTEXT''' The formation of intermediate and deep water masses is one of the most important processes occurring in the Mediterranean Sea, being a component of its general overturning circulation. This circulation varies at interannual and multidecadal time scales and it is composed of an upper zonal cell (Zonal Overturning Circulation) and two main meridional cells in the western and eastern Mediterranean (Pinardi and Masetti 2000). The objective is to monitor the main water mass formation events using the eddy resolving Mediterranean Sea Reanalysis (MEDSEA_MULTIYEAR_PHY_006_004, Escudier et al. 2020, 2021) and considering Pinardi et al. (2015) and Simoncelli and Pinardi (2018) as references for the methodology. The Mediterranean Sea Reanalysis can reproduce both Eastern Mediterranean Transient and Western Mediterranean Transition phenomena and catches the principal water mass formation events reported in the literature. This will permit constant monitoring of the open ocean deep convection process in the Mediterranean Sea and a better understanding of the multiple drivers of the general overturning circulation at interannual and multidecadal time scales. Deep and intermediate water formation events reveal themselves by a deep mixed layer depth distribution in four Mediterranean areas: Gulf of Lions, Southern Adriatic Sea Pit, Cretan Sea and Rhodes Gyre. '''KEY FINDINGS''' The Western Mediterranean Deep Water (WMDW) formation events in the Gulf of Lion appear to be larger after 1999 consistently with Schroeder et al. (2006, 2008) related to the Eastern Mediterranean Transient event. This modification of WMDW after 2005 has been called Western Mediterranean Transition. WMDW formation events are consistent with Somot et al. (2016) and the event in 2009 is also reported in Houpert et al. (2016). The Eastern Mediterranean Deep Water (EMDW) formation in the Southern Adriatic Pit region displays a period of water mass formation between 1988 and 1993, in agreement with Pinardi et al. (2015), in 1996, 1999 and 2000 as documented by Manca et al. (2002). Weak deep water formation in winter 2006 is confirmed by observations in Vilibić and Šantić (2008). An intense deep water formation event is detected in 2012-2013 (Gačić et al., 2014). Last years are characterized by large events starting from 2017 (Mihanovic et al., 2021). Cretan Intermediate Water formation rates present larger peaks between 1989 and 1993 with the ones in 1992 and 1993 composing the Eastern Mediterranean Transient phenomena. The Cretan Deep Water formed in 1992 and 1993 is characterized by the highest densities of the entire period in accordance with Velaoras et al. (2014). The Levantine Deep Water formation rate in the Rhode Gyre region presents the largest values between 1992 and 1993 in agreement with Kontoyiannis et al. (1999). '''DOI (product):''' https://doi.org/10.48670/mds-00318

'''DEFINITION''' Estimates of Ocean Heat Content (OHC) are obtained from integrated differences of the measured temperature and a climatology along a vertical profile in the ocean (von Schuckmann et al., 2018). The products used include three global reanalyses: GLORYS, C-GLORS, ORAS5 (GLOBAL_MULTIYEAR_PHY_ENS_001_031) and two in situ based reprocessed products: CORA5.2 (INSITU_GLO_PHY_TS_OA_MY_013_052) , ARMOR-3D (MULTIOBS_GLO_PHY_TSUV_3D_MYNRT_015_012). The regional OHC values are then averaged from 60°S-60°N aiming i) to obtain the mean OHC as expressed in Joules per meter square (J/m2) to monitor the large-scale variability and change. ii) to monitor the amount of energy in the form of heat stored in the ocean (i.e. the change of OHC in time), expressed in Watt per square meter (W/m2). Ocean heat content is one of the six Global Climate Indicators recommended by the World Meterological Organisation for Sustainable Development Goal 13 implementation (WMO, 2017). '''CONTEXT''' Knowing how much and where heat energy is stored and released in the ocean is essential for understanding the contemporary Earth system state, variability and change, as the ocean shapes our perspectives for the future (von Schuckmann et al., 2020). Variations in OHC can induce changes in ocean stratification, currents, sea ice and ice shelfs (IPCC, 2019; 2021); they set time scales and dominate Earth system adjustments to climate variability and change (Hansen et al., 2011); they are a key player in ocean-atmosphere interactions and sea level change (WCRP, 2018) and they can impact marine ecosystems and human livelihoods (IPCC, 2019). '''CMEMS KEY FINDINGS''' Regional trends for the period 2005-2023 from the Copernicus Marine Service multi-ensemble approach show warming at rates ranging from the global mean average up to more than 8 W/m2 in some specific regions (e.g. northern hemisphere western boundary current regimes). There are specific regions where a negative trend is observed above noise at rates up to about -5 W/m2 such as in the subpolar North Atlantic. These areas are characterized by strong year-to-year variability (Dubois et al., 2018; Capotondi et al., 2020). Note: The key findings will be updated annually in November, in line with OMI evolutions. '''DOI (product):''' https://doi.org/10.48670/moi-00236

'''DEFINITION''' The sea level ocean monitoring indicator is derived from the DUACS delayed-time (DT-2018 version) altimeter gridded maps of sea level anomalies based on a stable number of altimeters (two) in the satellite constellation. These products are distributed by the Copernicus Climate Change Service and are also available in the CMEMS catalogue (SEALEVEL_GLO_PHY_CLIMATE_L4_REP_OBSERVATIONS_008_057). To compute the regional mean sea level during the last year, the daily sea level maps of this year are first processed to obtain anomalies referenced to the 1993-2014 period. Then, the obtained individual maps are averaged during the last year. The altimeter data have not been corrected for the effect of the Glacial Isostatic Adjustment (GIA). '''CONTEXT''' Mean sea level evolution has a direct impact on coastal areas and is a crucial index of climate change since it reflects both the amount of heat added in the ocean and the mass loss due to land ice melt (e.g. IPCC, 2013; Dieng et al., 2017). Long-term and inter-annual variations of the sea level are observed at global and regional scales. They are related to the internal variability observed at basin scale and these variations can strongly affect population living in coastal areas. '''CMEMS KEY FINDINGS''' The sea level anomaly field for 2018 compared to the 1993-2014 climatology shows a large negative anomaly in the western subtropical Pacific Ocean and a positive anomaly along the equator, likely associated with ENSO (Schiermeier 2015). Note that an opposite pattern was observed with the 2017 anomaly. In 2019, a rather negative/positive dipole is observed in the West/East subtropical Pacific (the positive equatorial anomaly observed in 2018 is no more observed westward of 160°E. While in 2016, the northward extension of the positive anomaly reached the western US coast (Legeais et al. 2018), it is reduced during 2017 and a negative anomaly is observed in this area. In 2018, this anomaly has almost disappeared and in 2019, a positive anomaly is observed along all the western coast of North and South America. The slightly negative anomaly observed north of the Gulf Stream close to Greenland in 2017 is still observed in 2018 but has a reduced signature in 2019. And the negative anomaly found in 2017 in the North Indian ocean has disappeared in 2018 and a strong East/West dipole is observed in 2019. No major evolution has been observed in the South Atlantic Ocean between 2017, 2018 and 2019. In the Mediterranean Sea, a slightly higher sea level has been observed in 2018 compared to its climatological mean over the entire basin. Such a basin-wide pattern can be related to a response to changes in mass flux through the Strait of Gibraltar forced by the wind (Fukumori et al. 2007) but also to the interannual variability observed in this region (Pinardi & Masetti 2000). Reduced anomalies are observed in 2019 in the Mediterranean Sea. In the Baltic Sea, the positive anomaly observed in 2017 has been linked to a major inflow event (Mohrholz et al. 2015) that took place in 2015-2016 and the amplitude of the Baltic sea level anomaly has strongly reduced in 2018 and 2019.

'''This product has been archived'''                For operationnal and online products, please visit https://marine.copernicus.eu '''DEFINITION''' The BALTIC_OMI_TEMPSAL_sst_trend product includes the cumulative/net trend in sea surface temperature anomalies for the Baltic Sea from 1993-2021. The cumulative trend is the rate of change (°C/year) scaled by the number of years (29 years). The SST Level 4 analysis products that provide the input to the trend calculations are taken from the reprocessed product SST_BAL_SST_L4_REP_OBSERVATIONS_010_016 with a recent update to include 2021. The product has a spatial resolution of 0.02 degrees in latitude and longitude. The OMI time series runs from Jan 1, 1993 to December 31, 2021 and is constructed by calculating monthly averages from the daily level 4 SST analysis fields of the SST_BAL_SST_L4_REP_OBSERVATIONS_010_016 from 1993 to 2021. See the Copernicus Marine Service Ocean State Reports for more information on the OMI product (section 1.1 in Von Schuckmann et al., 2016; section 3 in Von Schuckmann et al., 2018). The times series of monthly anomalies have been used to calculate the trend in SST using Sen’s method with confidence intervals from the Mann-Kendall test (section 3 in Von Schuckmann et al., 2018). '''CONTEXT''' SST is an essential climate variable that is an important input for initialising numerical weather prediction models and fundamental for understanding air-sea interactions and monitoring climate change. The Baltic Sea is a region that requires special attention regarding the use of satellite SST records and the assessment of climatic variability (Høyer and She 2007; Høyer and Karagali 2016). The Baltic Sea is a semi-enclosed basin with natural variability and it is influenced by large-scale atmospheric processes and by the vicinity of land. In addition, the Baltic Sea is one of the largest brackish seas in the world. When analysing regional-scale climate variability, all these effects have to be considered, which requires dedicated regional and validated SST products. Satellite observations have previously been used to analyse the climatic SST signals in the North Sea and Baltic Sea (BACC II Author Team 2015; Lehmann et al. 2011). Recently, Høyer and Karagali (2016) demonstrated that the Baltic Sea had warmed 1-2oC from 1982 to 2012 considering all months of the year and 3-5oC when only July- September months were considered. This was corroborated in the Ocean State Reports (section 1.1 in Von Schuckmann et al., 2016; section 3 in Von Schuckmann et al., 2018). '''CMEMS KEY FINDINGS''' SST trends were calculated for the Baltic Sea area and the whole region including the North Sea, over the period January 1993 to December 2021. The average trend for the Baltic Sea domain (east of 9°E longitude) is 0.049 °C/year, which represents an average warming of 1.42 °C for the 1993-2021 period considered here. When the North Sea domain is included, the trend decreases to 0.03°C/year corresponding to an average warming of 0.87°C for the 1993-2021 period. Trends are highest for the Baltic Sea region and North Atlantic, especially offshore from Norway, compared to other regions. '''DOI (product):''' https://doi.org/10.48670/moi-00206

'''DEFINITION''' The Iberia-Biscay-Ireland (IBI) Ocean Heat Content (OHC) indicator, OMI_CLIMATE_OHC_IBI_area_averaged_anomalies, provides estimates of OHC anomalies computed over the reference period 1993–2024. The values are integrated from the surface down to 2000 m depth, using a reference density of ρ₀ = 1030 kg·m⁻³ and a specific heat capacity of cₚ = 3980 J·kg⁻¹·°C⁻¹ (e.g., von Schuckmann et al., 2009). This variable is directly proportional to the average temperature change in the ocean. Averaged time series of OHC anomalies and their associated uncertainties are computed for the IBI region (26° N–56° N; 19° W–5° E) using the following Copernicus Marine products: * '''IBI-MYP''' & '''IBI-INT''': IBI_MULTIYEAR_PHY_005_002 (reanalysis and interim datasets) * '''GLO-MYP''': GLOBAL_REANALYSIS_PHY_001_031 (reanalysis) * '''CORA''': INSITU_GLO_PHY_TS_OA_MY_013_052 (in situ observations) * '''ARMOR''': MULTIOBS_GLO_PHY_TSUV_3D_MYNRT_015_012 (reprocessed observations) The figure displays the ensemble mean (blue line) and the ensemble spread (grey shading). Further details on the indicator and data processing are provided in the corresponding Product User Manual (de Pascual-Collar et al., 2026) and in de Pascual-Collar et al. (2023), von Schuckmann et al. (2016), and von Schuckmann et al. (2018). '''CONTEXT''' Change in OHC is a key player in ocean-atmosphere interactions and sea level change (WCRP, 2018) and can impact marine ecosystems and human livelihoods (IPCC, 2019). Additionally, OHC is one of the six Global Climate Indicators recommended by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO, 2017). In the last decades, the upper North Atlantic Ocean experienced a reversal of climatic trends for temperature and salinity. While the period 1990-2004 is characterized by decadal-scale ocean warming, the period 2005-2014 shows a substantial cooling and freshening. Such variations are discussed to be linked to ocean internal dynamics, and air-sea interactions (Fox-Kemper et al., 2021; Collins et al., 2019; Robson et al 2016). Together with changes linked to the connectivity between the North Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea (Masina et al., 2022; Potter and Lozier, 2004), these variations affect the temporal evolution of regional ocean heat content in the IBI region. Recent studies (de Pascual-Collar et al., 2023) highlight the key role that subsurface water masses play in the OHC trends in the IBI region. These studies conclude that the vertically integrated trend is the result of different trends (both positive and negative) contributing at different layers. Therefore, the lack of representativeness of the OHC trends in the surface-intermediate waters (from 0 to 1000 m) causes the trends in intermediate and deep waters (from 1000 m to 2000 m) to be masked when they are calculated by integrating the upper layers of the ocean (from surface down to 2000 m). Among the different periods of interannual variability identified by the indicator, a sustained increase in OHC from 2023 onwards is particularly noteworthy. This short-term trend results in 2024 exhibiting the highest OHC value recorded in the time series. '''CMEMS KEY FINDINGS''' The ensemble mean OHC anomaly time series over the Iberia–Biscay–Ireland region is characterized by marked interannual variability and a a statistically significant ocean warming trend of 0.55 ± 0.3 W m⁻² (99% confidence interval). In addition, the final year of the time series (2024) exhibits the highest OHC value recorded, following a period of sustained warming that began in 2023. '''DOI (product):''' https://doi.org/10.48670/mds-00316

'''DEFINITION''' The temporal evolution of thermosteric sea level in an ocean layer is obtained from an integration of temperature driven ocean density variations, which are subtracted from a reference climatology to obtain the fluctuations from an average field. The products used include three global reanalyses: GLORYS, C-GLORS, ORAS5 (GLOBAL_MULTIYEAR_PHY_ENS_001_031) and two in situ based reprocessed products: CORA5.2 (INSITU_GLO_PHY_TS_OA_MY_013_052) , ARMOR-3D (MULTIOBS_GLO_PHY_TSUV_3D_MYNRT_015_012). The regional thermosteric sea level values are then averaged from 60°S-60°N aiming to monitor interannual to long term global sea level variations caused by temperature driven ocean volume changes through thermal expansion as expressed in meters (m). '''CONTEXT''' Most of the interannual variability and trends in regional sea level is caused by changes in steric sea level. At mid and low latitudes, the steric sea level signal is essentially due to temperature changes, i.e. the thermosteric effect (Stammer et al., 2013, Meyssignac et al., 2016). Salinity changes play only a local role. Regional trends of thermosteric sea level can be significantly larger compared to their globally averaged versions (Storto et al., 2018). Except for shallow shelf sea and high latitudes (> 60° latitude), regional thermosteric sea level variations are mostly related to ocean circulation changes, in particular in the tropics where the sea level variations and trends are the most intense over the last two decades. '''CMEMS KEY FINDINGS''' Significant (i.e. when the signal exceeds the noise) regional trends for the period 2005-2023 from the Copernicus Marine Service multi-ensemble approach show a thermosteric sea level rise at rates ranging from the global mean average up to more than 8 mm/year. There are specific regions where a negative trend is observed above noise at rates up to about -5 mm/year such as in the subpolar North Atlantic, or the western tropical Pacific. These areas are characterized by strong year-to-year variability (Dubois et al., 2018; Capotondi et al., 2020). Note: The key findings will be updated annually in November, in line with OMI evolutions. '''DOI (product):''' https://doi.org/10.48670/moi-00241

'''DEFINITION''' Volume transport across lines are obtained by integrating the volume fluxes along some selected sections and from top to bottom of the ocean. The values are computed from models’ daily output. The mean value over a reference period (1993-2014) and over the last full year are provided for the ensemble product and the individual reanalysis, as well as the standard deviation for the ensemble product over the reference period (1993-2014). The values are given in Sverdrup (Sv). '''CONTEXT''' The ocean transports heat and mass by vertical overturning and horizontal circulation, and is one of the fundamental dynamic components of the Earth’s energy budget (IPCC, 2013). There are spatial asymmetries in the energy budget resulting from the Earth’s orientation to the sun and the meridional variation in absorbed radiation which support a transfer of energy from the tropics towards the poles. However, there are spatial variations in the loss of heat by the ocean through sensible and latent heat fluxes, as well as differences in ocean basin geometry and current systems. These complexities support a pattern of oceanic heat transport that is not strictly from lower to high latitudes. Moreover, it is not stationary and we are only beginning to unravel its variability. '''CMEMS KEY FINDINGS''' The mean transports estimated by the ensemble global reanalysis are comparable to estimates based on observations; the uncertainties on these integrated quantities are still large in all the available products. At Drake Passage, the multi-product approach (product no. 2.4.1) is larger than the value (130 Sv) of Lumpkin and Speer (2007), but smaller than the new observational based results of Colin de Verdière and Ollitrault, (2016) (175 Sv) and Donohue (2017) (173.3 Sv). Note: The key findings will be updated annually in November, in line with OMI evolutions. '''DOI (product):''' https://doi.org/10.48670/moi-00247

'''DEFINITION''' Significant wave height (SWH), expressed in metres, is the average height of the highest third of waves. This OMI provides global maps of the seasonal mean and trend of significant wave height (SWH), as well as time series in three oceanic regions of the same variables and their trends from 2002 to 2020, calculated from the reprocessed global L4 SWH product (WAVE_GLO_PHY_SWH_L4_MY_014_007). The extreme SWH is defined as the 95th percentile of the daily maximum SWH for the selected period and region. The 95th percentile is the value below which 95% of the data points fall, indicating higher than normal wave heights. The mean and 95th percentile of SWH (in m) are calculated for two seasons of the year to take into account the seasonal variability of waves (January, February and March, and July, August and September). Trends have been obtained using linear regression and are expressed in cm/yr. For the time series, the uncertainty around the trend was obtained from the linear regression, while the uncertainty around the mean and 95th percentile was bootstrapped. For the maps, if the p-value obtained from the linear regression is less than 0.05, the trend is considered significant. '''CONTEXT''' Grasping the nature of global ocean surface waves, their variability, and their long-term interannual shifts is essential for climate research and diverse oceanic and coastal applications. The sixth IPCC Assessment Report underscores the significant role waves play in extreme sea level events (Mentaschi et al., 2017), flooding (Storlazzi et al., 2018), and coastal erosion (Barnard et al., 2017). Additionally, waves impact ocean circulation and mediate interactions between air and sea (Donelan et al., 1997) as well as sea-ice interactions (Thomas et al., 2019). Studying these long-term and interannual changes demands precise time series data spanning several decades. Until now, such records have been available only from global model reanalyses or localised in situ observations. While buoy data are valuable, they offer limited local insights and are especially scarce in the southern hemisphere. In contrast, altimeters deliver global, high-quality measurements of significant wave heights (SWH) (Gommenginger et al., 2002). The growing satellite record of SWH now facilitates more extensive global and long-term analyses. By using SWH data from a multi-mission altimetric product from 2002 to 2020, we can calculate global mean SWH and extreme SWH and evaluate their trends, regionally and globally. '''KEY FINDINGS''' From 2002 to 2020, positive trends in both Significant Wave Height (SWH) and extreme SWH are mostly found in the southern hemisphere (a, b). The 95th percentile of wave heights (q95), increases faster than the average values, indicating that extreme waves are growing more rapidly than average wave height (a, b). Extreme SWH’s global maps highlight heavily storms affected regions, including the western North Pacific, the North Atlantic and the eastern tropical Pacific (a). In the North Atlantic, SWH has increased in summertime (July August September) but decreased in winter. Specifically, the 95th percentile SWH trend is decreasing by 2.1 ± 3.3 cm/year, while the mean SWH shows a decrease of 2.2 ± 1.76 cm/year. In the south of Australia, during boreal winter, the 95th percentile SWH is increasing at 2.6 ± 1.5 cm/year (c), with the mean SWH increasing by 0.5 ± 0.66 cm/year (d). Finally, in the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, also in boreal winter, the 95th percentile SWH trend is 3.2 ± 2.14 cm/year (c) and the mean SWH trend is 1.7 ± 0.84 cm/year (d). These patterns highlight the complex and region-specific nature of wave height trends. Further discussion is available in A. Laloue et al. (2024). '''DOI (product):''' https://doi.org/10.48670/mds-00352

'''DEFINITION''' Ocean acidification is quantified by decreases in pH, which is a measure of acidity: a decrease in pH value means an increase in acidity, that is, acidification. The observed decrease in ocean pH resulting from increasing concentrations of CO2 is an important indicator of global change. The estimate of global mean pH builds on a reconstruction methodology, * Obtain values for alkalinity based on the so called “locally interpolated alkalinity regression (LIAR)” method after Carter et al., 2016; 2018. * Build on surface ocean partial pressure of carbon dioxide (CMEMS product: MULTIOBS_GLO_BIO_CARBON_SURFACE_REP_015_008) obtained from an ensemble of Feed-Forward Neural Networks (Chau et al. 2022) which exploit sampling data gathered in the Surface Ocean CO2 Atlas (SOCAT) (https://www.socat.info/) * Derive a gridded field of ocean surface pH based on the van Heuven et al., (2011) CO2 system calculations using reconstructed pCO2 (MULTIOBS_GLO_BIO_CARBON_SURFACE_REP_015_008) and alkalinity. The global mean average of pH at yearly time steps is then calculated from the gridded ocean surface pH field. It is expressed in pH unit on total hydrogen ion scale. In the figure, the amplitude of the uncertainty (1σ ) of yearly mean surface sea water pH varies at a range of (0.0023, 0.0029) pH unit (see Quality Information Document for more details). The trend and uncertainty estimates amount to -0.0017±0.0004e-1 pH units per year. The indicator is derived from in situ observations of CO2 fugacity (SOCAT data base, www.socat.info, Bakker et al., 2016). These observations are still sparse in space and time. Monitoring pH at higher space and time resolutions, as well as in coastal regions will require a denser network of observations and preferably direct pH measurements. A full discussion regarding this OMI can be found in section 2.10 of the Ocean State Report 4 (Gehlen et al., 2020). '''CONTEXT''' The decrease in surface ocean pH is a direct consequence of the uptake by the ocean of carbon dioxide. It is referred to as ocean acidification. The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Workshop on Impacts of Ocean Acidification on Marine Biology and Ecosystems (2011) defined Ocean Acidification as “a reduction in the pH of the ocean over an extended period, typically decades or longer, which is caused primarily by uptake of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, but can also be caused by other chemical additions or subtractions from the ocean”. The pH of contemporary surface ocean waters is already 0.1 lower than at pre-industrial times and an additional decrease by 0.33 pH units is projected over the 21st century in response to the high concentration pathway RCP8.5 (Bopp et al., 2013). Ocean acidification will put marine ecosystems at risk (e.g. Orr et al., 2005; Gehlen et al., 2011; Kroeker et al., 2013). The monitoring of surface ocean pH has become a focus of many international scientific initiatives (http://goa-on.org/) and constitutes one target for SDG14 (https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg14). '''CMEMS KEY FINDINGS''' Since the year 1985, global ocean surface pH is decreasing at a rate of -0.0017±0.019 decade-1 '''DOI (product):''' https://doi.org/10.48670/moi-00224

'''DEFINITION''' The temporal evolution of thermosteric sea level in an ocean layer (here: 0-700m) is obtained from an integration of temperature driven ocean density variations, which are subtracted from a reference climatology (here 1993-2014) to obtain the fluctuations from an average field. The regional thermosteric sea level values from 1993 to close to real time are then averaged from 60°S-60°N aiming to monitor interannual to long term global sea level variations caused by temperature driven ocean volume changes through thermal expansion as expressed in meters (m). '''CONTEXT''' The global mean sea level is reflecting changes in the Earth’s climate system in response to natural and anthropogenic forcing factors such as ocean warming, land ice mass loss and changes in water storage in continental river basins (IPCC, 2019). Thermosteric sea-level variations result from temperature related density changes in sea water associated with volume expansion and contraction (Storto et al., 2018). Global thermosteric sea level rise caused by ocean warming is known as one of the major drivers of contemporary global mean sea level rise (WCRP, 2018). '''CMEMS KEY FINDINGS''' Since the year 1993 the upper (0-700m) near-global (60°S-60°N) thermosteric sea level rises at a rate of 1.5±0.1 mm/year.