Gulf of Mexico Water Chemistry and Temperature Profiles from 1981-1983

Water column data from the Gulf of Mexico includes chemical parameters like salinity, pH, oxygen, and nutrients, plus physical parameters like temperature, density, and current velocity. Data were collected via moored current meters and expendable bathythermographs from NOAA Ship Researcher and other vessels between May 1981 and April 1983. Raytheon Co. submitted the data as part of the Brine Disposal project, processed by NODC into standard F004 and UBT formats.

Use Cases

• Analyze temperature-depth profiles from XBT inflection points to model thermocline structure in the Gulf of Mexico.
• Correlate chemical parameters like salinity, phosphate, and oxygen concentration with physical measurements like sigma-t density and current velocity components.
• Study temporal changes in water chemistry and physics across the two-year observation period from specific cruise and station records.
• Validate oceanographic models using paired temperature-depth values and associated environmental conditions reported for each cast.

Strengths

• Data spans a multi-year period from May 19, 1981 to April 12, 1983.
• Includes a wide range of measured parameters: over 10 chemical and physical variables per the F004 format description.
• Profiles can reach depths up to 1830 meters with special XBT instruments.

Limitations

• Temporal coverage is limited to early 1980s, making it a historical snapshot.
• Sample size and spatial resolution within the Gulf of Mexico are unknown.
• Data structure uses non-uniform depth increments for XBT data, requiring interpolation for some analyses.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), originally from Raytheon Co.

Collection Method

Collected using moored current meter casts and expendable bathythermograph (XBT) instruments from research vessels.

Time Range

1981-05-19 to 1983-04-12

Geography

Gulf of Mexico