Oceanus Cruise: High-Resolution CTD Profiles in the North Atlantic

High-resolution conductivity-temperature-depth data from the OCEANUS research vessel captures near-continuous water column profiles from the North American coastline during a six-day cruise in October 1983. Processed to the NODC F022 standard, the dataset likely contains station-level information, position, time, and environmental conditions alongside core measurements of temperature, salinity, and density. Columns suggest parameters may also include dissolved oxygen or transmissivity, reported at depth intervals as fine as one meter.

Use Cases

• Analyzing vertical structure of temperature and salinity based on high-resolution CTD casts.
• Calculating water density (sigma-t) for studies of ocean stratification and mixing.
• Correlating surface meteorological conditions with subsurface oceanographic properties.
• Examining spatial variability of water masses along a cruise track in the North Atlantic.

Strengths

• Data is processed to a recognized standard format (NODC F022), ensuring consistency and interoperability.
• Provides high-resolution profiles with potential sampling at 1-meter depth intervals, offering fine vertical detail.
• Includes ancillary station metadata such as position, date, time, and possibly surface conditions.

Limitations

• Metadata completeness is low: exact column names, row counts, file size, and license are unknown.
• Conflicting last-updated dates exist between platforms (2026 vs. 1983), casting doubt on provenance and maintenance.
• The dataset is a single, short-duration cruise from 1983, limiting temporal and spatial scale.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce

Collection Method

Collected via CTD/STD instruments from the R/V OCEANUS and processed by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC).

Time Range

1983-10-19 to 1983-10-24

Freshness

2026-04-01 15:00:28.855309

Geography

North Atlantic Ocean, specifically the North American Coastline-North region.