Processed CTD Oceanographic Data from Gulf of Mexico Deepwater Horizon Response

2011-09-20 to 2011-09-27 measurements of water column properties from NOAA Ship Pisces. The dataset contains processed Conductivity, Temperature, and Depth (CTD) casts, along with dissolved oxygen and fluorometry, collected for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill sampling effort. Data was processed and quality-checked by NOAA NCEI, with final products delivered as NetCDF files.

Use Cases

• Analyze vertical profiles of temperature and salinity (conductivity) to model water column stratification in the Gulf of Mexico.
• Correlate fluorometry measurements with chlorophyll levels to assess phytoplankton biomass changes near the spill site.
• Use dissolved oxygen data alongside temperature and depth to evaluate water mass characteristics and potential hypoxic conditions.
• Map the spatial distribution of CTD cast locations to visualize oceanographic parameter coverage during the spill response.

Strengths

• Data covers a specific 8-day cruise leg during a major environmental event.
• Measurements include multiple parameters: temperature, conductivity/salinity, depth, dissolved oxygen, and fluorometry.
• Data has been processed and undergone quality checks, as stated in the description.

Limitations

• Exact row count, column details, and sample size are unknown.
• Temporal coverage is limited to a single week in September 2011.
• Geographic coverage is specific to the cruise track in the Gulf of Mexico, not the entire region.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI Accession 0130083).

Collection Method

Conductivity, Temperature, and Depth (CTD) measurements collected aboard NOAA Ship Pisces.

Time Range

2011-09-20 to 2011-09-27

Freshness

Data collection ended on 2011-09-27; it is a historical snapshot.

Geography

Gulf of Mexico, specific to the cruise track of NOAA Ship Pisces Cruise 12 Leg 2.