Data from the OCEAN VERITAS vessel includes Attenuation/Transmission, CDOM fluorescence, Semivolatile Organic Compounds, Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons, and conductivity collected in the Gulf of Mexico. The Subsurface Monitoring Unit, a multi-agency group, gathered this information over five days from July 19 to 23, 2010. These provisional laboratory analyses and CTD profiles were created for real-time decision support following the April 2010 spill.
Use Cases
- Analyzing Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons (TPH) concentration trends over the five-day sampling period.
- Correlating CDOM fluorescence readings with measurements of Semivolatile Organic Compounds to track dissolved organic matter.
- Mapping spatial distributions of conductivity, salinity, and temperature from CTD profile data.
- Comparing Volatile Organic Compounds data with dissolved oxygen levels to assess biological impacts.
- Using attenuation/transmission and suspended solids measurements to evaluate water clarity and particulate loads.
Strengths
- Data covers a specific, critical five-day period immediately following a major environmental event.
- Includes multiple data types from chemical analyses (e.g., TPH, VOCs) to physical profiles (e.g., CTD data).
- CTD data underwent preliminary quality assurance and control procedures at the National Coastal Data Development Center.
Limitations
- Analytical chemistry data are labeled as provisional, indicating they are not final validated results.
- The dataset's temporal coverage is limited to only five days, providing a snapshot rather than a long-term record.
- Specific row counts, column details, and sample sizes for each measurement type are unknown.
Provenance
- Source
- Subsurface Monitoring Unit (SMU), consisting of multiple government and corporate agencies.
- Collection Method
- Data collected aboard the OCEAN VERITAS using CTD, LISST, transmissometer, bottle, fluorometer, oxygen meter, and other physical sampling devices.
- Time Range
- 2010-07-19 to 2010-07-23
- Freshness
- null
- Geography
- Gulf of Mexico