Coastal Current Meter Data from the New York Bight (1979)

A time-series dataset from the New York Bight coastal region, containing ocean current direction and speed measurements from fixed platforms. The data were collected by the National Ocean Service (NOS) over a 45-day period from July to September 1979 and processed by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC).

Use Cases

• Analyzing tidal and wind-driven current patterns using the reported current direction and speed values at 10-15 minute intervals.
• Correlating water temperature and salinity data with current measurements to study water mass movements.
• Validating coastal wave models using reported parameters for dominant wave direction, height, and period.
• Assessing sensor performance by examining the optional comments field for instrument-specific notes.

Strengths

• Data adheres to a documented standard format (NODC F005) with a full public description.
• Includes multiple environmental parameters beyond currents, such as water temperature, salinity, and wave data.

Limitations

• Limited temporal coverage of only 45 days from a single summer period in 1979.
• Unknown sample size, row count, and geographic precision of station positions.
• Data values may have undergone unspecified averaging or filtering during processing.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), originally from the National Ocean Service (NOS).

Collection Method

Eulerian measurements from moored current-measuring instruments, principally Aanderaa current meters, at fixed platforms.

Time Range

1979-07-30 to 1979-09-12

Freshness

null

Geography

New York Bight coastal region (North Atlantic Ocean).