North Pacific Ocean Carbon and Chemistry Profiles from April-May 2000

Discrete sample and profile data collected from the RYOFU MARU research vessel in the North Pacific Ocean between April 20 and May 24, 2000. The dataset includes measurements for dissolved inorganic carbon, pH, alkalinity, nutrients, chlorofluorocarbons, chlorophyll, and related physical parameters like temperature and salinity. Data were collected by researchers from the Japan Meteorological Agency and Meteorological Research Institute as part of the PACIFICA international synthesis project.

Use Cases

• Modeling ocean acidification trends based on pH and dissolved inorganic carbon measurements.
• Analyzing nutrient cycles (nitrate, phosphate, silicate) and their relationship to biological activity indicated by chlorophyll.
• Studying ocean ventilation and circulation using chlorofluorocarbon (CFC-11, CFC-12) tracer data.
• Investigating carbon isotope distributions (Delta Carbon-13) for biogeochemical process studies.
• Calibrating and validating regional or global ocean carbon models based on the profile and discrete sample data.

Strengths

• Data collection occurred during a dedicated research cruise (PACIFICA_49RY20000420) over a focused 35-day period.
• Includes a wide range of co-located parameters (22+ variables) enabling multivariate analysis of ocean chemistry.
• Project is part of an international collaborative synthesis effort (PACIFICA) supported by PICES.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment for large-scale modeling.
• Data may reflect temporal and geographic bias inherent to a single cruise in the North Pacific during spring 2000.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce

Collection Method

Data collected using CTD and bottle instruments from the RYOFU MARU research vessel.

Time Range

2000-04-20 to 2000-05 24

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-05 23:30:47.727977; freshness should be verified.

Geography

North Pacific Ocean