PACIFICA: Ocean Carbon and Chemistry Profiles from the Philippine Sea, July 1998

The Philippine Sea is the location for this dataset of discrete water sample and profile observations collected from the SHUMPU MARU between July 9 and July 17, 1998. It includes measurements for dissolved inorganic carbon, pH, alkalinity, nutrients, chlorophyll, and chlorofluorocarbons. The data were collected by researchers from the Japan Meteorological Agency and Meteorological Research Institute as part of the PACIFICA project.

Use Cases

• Modeling ocean acidification impacts based on pH and dissolved inorganic carbon measurements.
• Studying marine primary productivity based on chlorophyll a and nutrient (nitrate, phosphate) concentrations.
• Analyzing water mass age and circulation based on chlorofluorocarbon (CFC-11, CFC-12) tracers.
• Investigating carbonate system dynamics based on alkalinity, DIC, and pH data.

Strengths

• Includes over 20 distinct chemical, biological, and physical parameters for a holistic view of water column properties.
• Data were collected as part of the international PACIFICA synthesis project, suggesting standardized protocols.
• Specific instruments used are listed, including CTD and Coulometer for DIC measurement.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data is from a single 9-day cruise in 1998, limiting temporal and spatial generalizability.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce

Collection Method

Discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, Coulometer, and bottle samples.

Time Range

1998-07-09 to 1998-07-17

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-06 00:18:46.357583; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Philippine Sea