Ocracoke Sea Temperature

Looking to find out what the sea water temperature in Ocracoke is for today and the next few days? Below are data and charts that will give you information about sea temperatures in Ocracoke and nearby locations.

Water temperature in Ocracoke right now

Below is the current sea temperature for Ocracoke, United States on January 10, 2026.

Today

Yesterday

A week ago

Water at this temperature is cold and will feel very cold initially, but the body will get used to it and longer swims are possible. Experienced swimmers can manage several hours of swimming, however hypothermia is still a very big risk.

The average sea temperature for Ocracoke on January 10 over the last 10 years is 11.3° C (52.34° F), with a low temperature of 5.58° C (42.04° F) and a high of 16.18° C (61.12° F).

Analysis and forecast for Ocracoke water temperatures

The water temperature in Ocracoke today is the same as the average temperature of 11.3° C (52.34° F) and the temperature on this day last year was 11.3° C (52.34° F).

The chart and table below shows the change in water temperature in Ocracoke over the last 30 days:

DateTemperature (Celsius)Temperature (Fahrenheit)
January 1011.3° C52.34° F
January 911.66° C52.98° F
January 811.62° C52.91° F
January 711.34° C52.42° F
January 611.3° C52.35° F
January 511.15° C52.06° F
January 411.33° C52.4° F
January 311.76° C53.16° F
January 211.47° C52.65° F
January 111.15° C52.06° F
December 3110.78° C51.41° F
December 3010.74° C51.33° F
December 2910.7° C51.26° F
December 2810.32° C50.57° F
December 2710.47° C50.85° F
December 2610.66° C51.18° F
December 2511.01° C51.81° F
December 2411.25° C52.25° F
December 2311.52° C52.74° F
December 2211.57° C52.82° F
December 2111.51° C52.71° F
December 2011.7° C53.06° F
December 1911.87° C53.36° F
December 1811.59° C52.86° F
December 1711.53° C52.75° F
December 1611.31° C52.37° F
December 1511.6° C52.87° F
December 1412° C53.6° F
December 1312.25° C54.06° F
December 1212.1° C53.78° F

The actual nearshore temperatures may vary by several degrees and this can also be heavily affected by weather. Strong winds can cause cold, deep waters to replace the surface waters that had been warmed by the sun, and heavy rain can also reduce the temperature of the sea surface temperature as well.

Water temperature in Ocracoke by month

The chart below shows the monthly average water temperature in Ocracoke.

For more detailed information on how the sea temperature in Ocracoke changes for each month of the year, choose from the months below.

Ocracoke map and nearby water temperatures

Ocracoke sea temperature map

Locations near Ocracoke

Why measure sea surface temperatures (SST) in Ocracoke?

The ocean covers about 71% of the Earth's surface, and scientists record the sea surface temperature (SST) of locations such as Ocracoke because they want to understand and learn how the ocean communicates with the atmosphere of Earth.

SST is one measure that provides information on the global climate, and it can be used to predict the weather in Ocracoke as well as atmospheric model simulations and to study marine ecosystems in the area.

Data source and citation

Raw data for the calculations made to find the sea surface temperature in Ocracoke comes from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and their 1/4° daily Optimum Interpolation Sea Surface Temperature.

The water temperature data is constructed by combining observations from different platforms (satellites, ships, buoys, and Argo floats) on a regular global grid. A spatially complete sea surface temperature map is then built by interpolating to fill in gaps in the data.

If you'd like to use any of the information above in the format it is presented, please use the citation tool below.