Gaillard F. auteur aut IRD Diverrès Denis auteur aut IRD Jacquin S. auteur aut IRD Gouriou Yves auteur aut IRD Grelet Jacques auteur aut IRD Le Menn M. auteur aut IRD Tassel J. auteur aut IRD Reverdin G. auteur aut IRD text journalArticle eng text/pdf reformatted digital access French Research vessels have been collecting thermo-salinometer (TSG) data since 1999 to contribute to the Global Ocean Surface Underway Data (GOSUD) programme. The instruments are regularly calibrated and continuously monitored. Water samples are taken on a daily basis by the crew and later analysed in the laboratory. We present here the delayed mode processing of the 2001–2013 dataset and an overview of the resulting quality. Salinity measurement error was a few hundredths of a unit or less on the practical salinity scale (PSS), due to careful calibration and instrument maintenance, complemented with a rigorous adjustment on water samples. In a global comparison, these data show excellent agreement with an ARGO-based salinity gridded product. The Sea Surface Salinity and Temperature from French REsearch SHips (SSST-FRESH) dataset is very valuable for the ‘calibration and validation’ of the new satellite observations delivered by the Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) and Aquarius missions. specialized FRANCE MEDITERRANEE ESPAGNE ATLANTIQUE 032 030 126 art. 150054 [9 ] 2015 2052-4463 https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010065628 10.1038/sdata.2015.54 2052-4463 [F B010065628] https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010065628 https://horizon.documentation.ird.fr/exl-doc/pleins_textes/divers15-12/010065628.pdf IRD - Base Horizon / Pleins textes 2015-12-03 2021-03-16 fdi:010065628 fre