Lake Superior Water Column Measurements from 1995-1996

Over 100 days of conductivity, temperature, depth, pressure, transmissivity, and fluorescence data were collected from the NOODIN research vessel across two field seasons. Dr. Elise A. Ralph from the University of Minnesota's Large Lakes Observatory submitted the measurements. Observations span June to October 1995 and May to November 1996.

Use Cases

• Analyze seasonal variation in water temperature and fluorescence to track phytoplankton blooms in Lake Superior.
• Model water density and stratification using concurrent conductivity, temperature, depth, and pressure measurements.
• Calibrate satellite-derived water clarity estimates with in-situ transmissivity data from CTD casts.
• Correlate pressure and depth readings to validate sensor performance and calculate water column profiles.

Strengths

• Data collected across two full field seasons covering spring, summer, and fall conditions.
• Includes six concurrent physical and optical water column parameters for multivariate analysis.

Limitations

• Temporal coverage is discontinuous, with a gap of over six months between the 1995 and 1996 campaigns.
• Spatial coverage is limited to a single transect between Two Harbors, MN and Port Wing, WI.
• Exact sample count, row count, and measurement frequency are unknown.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI).

Collection Method

Collected using transmissometer, fluorometer, and CTD casts from the research vessel NOODIN.

Time Range

1995-06-20 to 1995-10-26 and 1996-05-30 to 1996-11-14.

Freshness

Data collection ended in November 1996; the dataset is historical.

Geography

Lake Superior, along a transect from Two Harbors, Minnesota to Port Wing, Wisconsin.