August 12-16, 2010 data collection aboard the OCEAN VERITAS in the Gulf of Mexico. The Subsurface Monitoring Unit gathered chemical, physical, profile, and laboratory analysis data in response to the Deepwater Horizon spill. Instruments included CTD, LISST, transmissometer, fluorometer, and oxygen meter.
Use Cases
- Analyze Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons (TPH) and Volatile Organic Compounds concentrations to model oil plume dispersion.
- Correlate CDOM fluorescence and attenuation/transmission measurements with suspended solids data to assess water clarity changes.
- Use conductivity, salinity, and temperature profiles from CTD data to understand the spill's impact on ocean stratification.
- Combine dissolved oxygen and hydrostatic pressure readings to evaluate potential effects on marine life habitats.
Strengths
- Data collected over a focused 5-day period during a major environmental event.
- Includes multiple data types: chemical analysis, physical profiles, and laboratory results.
- CTD data underwent preliminary quality assurance and control procedures at NCDDC.
Limitations
- Analytical chemistry data are labeled as provisional.
- Temporal coverage is limited to a single, short cruise in August 2010.
- Geographic scope is confined to the Gulf of Mexico near the spill site.
Provenance
- Source
- Subsurface Monitoring Unit (SMU), consisting of multiple government and corporate agencies.
- Collection Method
- Data collected via CTD, LISST, transmissometer, bottle, fluorometer, oxygen meter, and other physical sampling devices aboard the OCEAN VERITAS.
- Time Range
- 2010-08-12 to 2010-08-16
- Freshness
- null
- Geography
- Gulf of Mexico