PACIFICA: Ocean Carbon and Chemistry Measurements from the Pacific Ocean, 2005

Discrete and profile measurements of dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, pH, nutrients, and other variables collected from the KEIFU MARU research vessel. The data were gathered in the North Pacific Ocean, Philippine Sea, and South Pacific Ocean from January 18 to February 24, 2005, during the PACIFICA_49FA20050118 cruise. Kinmochi Asari of the Japan Meteorological Agency and Masao Ishii of the Meteorological Research Institute collected the data as part of the international PACIFICA project for synthesizing Pacific Ocean interior carbon data.

Use Cases

• Modeling ocean acidification trends based on pH and alkalinity measurements.
• Analyzing carbon sequestration potential based on dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) tracers.
• Studying marine nutrient cycles based on nitrate, phosphate, and silicate concentrations.
• Investigating phytoplankton biomass dynamics based on chlorophyll a and phaeophytin data.
• Calibrating ocean biogeochemical models using hydrographic profiles of temperature, salinity, and sigma-theta.

Strengths

• Includes over 20 distinct chemical, biological, and physical parameters relevant to ocean carbon studies.
• Data collected during a dedicated research cruise (PACIFICA_49FA20050118) with a clear temporal range of 2005-01 18 to 2005-02-24.
• Part of an international collaborative synthesis project (PACIFICA) supported by PICES, suggesting a degree of quality control.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics and data structure must be inferred after download.
• Row count and file size are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment for large-scale analysis.
• Data is from a single cruise in early 2005, which may limit temporal generalizability.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce

Collection Method

Data collected from discrete sample and profile observations using CTD, Coulometer for DIC measurement, bottle, and other instruments.

Time Range

2005-01-18 to 2005-02-24

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-05 23:23:55.258941; freshness should be verified.

Geography

North Pacific Ocean, Philippine Sea, South Pacific Ocean