Remote sea-surface temperature variations (2001–2019) in Kuwait Bay: Time series analysis in frequency and time domains

Abstract

There is a recognized need to analyze the temporal changes of sea surface temperature in various water bodies, especially the semi-enclosed ones, because of the direct link between sea temperature and aquatic biodiversity. There has been substantial research undertaken on the role of time series analysis as a powerful technique for studying the characteristics of long-term SST changes at regular time intervals. The present paper aimed to study the monthly-averaged MODIS SST data (2001–2019) over Kuwait Bay, i.e., the northwestern corner of the Arabian Gulf. Because different approaches can yield different results, the analysis of the SST time series was conducted using time and frequency domains. The preliminary analysis of the time series reported a significant SST peak in August 2010 that reached nearly 34.2 °C (SD = 0.17 °C) due to the moderate intensity El Niño event in 2010. However, in the preceding year, we observed a cool SST anomaly in the range of –0.5 °C to –2.4 °C. From the SMK trend test, we found that monthly climatological SST in September exhibited a significant upward trend (𝑆9 = 103, 𝜏 = 0.6, 𝑃 = 0.0004). Pettitt’s changepoint test indicated a significant change in the central tendency of SST data after April 2012. The annual periodicity of the SST in Kuwait Bay was constant over the 19 years. Furthermore, a very weak periodicity of 6-month has been barely noticed. Our present results provide large-scale guidance that affirms the importance of highlighting the severe SST fluctuations in Kuwait’s water in order to understand and improve its marine environmental status.