Over 13 distinct chemical and physical parameters, including volatile organic compounds and total petroleum hydrocarbons, were collected aboard the OCEAN VERITAS research vessel. The Subsurface Monitoring Unit, a multi-agency group, gathered this data in the Gulf of Mexico over four days following the 2010 spill. Measurements were taken using instruments like CTDs, fluorometers, and transmissometers.
Use Cases
- Analyzing Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons (TPH) concentration trends relative to hydrostatic pressure and salinity measurements.
- Modeling correlations between CDOM fluorescence readings and Semivolatile Organic Compounds data to track dissolved organic matter.
- Assessing water column health by examining dissolved oxygen levels alongside temperature and conductivity profiles.
- Investigating suspended solids attenuation/transmission data in conjunction with sound velocity measurements.
- Using provisional laboratory analysis results for volatile organic compounds to validate real-time sensor data from the cruise.
Strengths
- Data covers 13 specific oceanographic parameters, providing multi-faceted environmental assessment.
- Collection occurred over a focused 4-day period immediately following a major environmental event.
- Instruments included multiple specialized devices like LISST, CTD, and oxygen meters.
- Includes products created for real-time analysis, such as charts, graphs, and GIS files.
Limitations
- Analytical chemistry data are labeled as provisional, indicating potential unverified results.
- The temporal coverage is limited to only four days in August 2010.
- Individual metadata records are separate, requiring additional lookup for specific dataset details.
Provenance
- Source
- Subsurface Monitoring Unit (SMU), consisting of multiple government and corporate agencies.
- Collection Method
- Data collected via shipboard instruments (CTD, LISST, fluorometer, etc.) and onshore laboratory analysis of samples.
- Time Range
- 2010-07-31 to 2010-08-03
- Freshness
- null
- Geography
- Gulf of Mexico