December 2016 to November 2017 water temperature profiles were collected from expendable bathythermographs (XBTs) deployed from five commercial and research vessels. The data cover the Coral Sea, Indian Ocean, Southern Ocean, South Pacific Ocean, and Tasman Sea. Quality-controlled data were submitted by Australia's CSIRO as part of the Global Temperature and Salinity Profile Programme (GTSPP) and Ship of Opportunity Programme (SOOP).
Use Cases
- Analyzing vertical temperature structure and mixed-layer depth from XBT profile data across multiple ocean basins.
- Mapping spatial and temporal temperature anomalies in the Southern Ocean using georeferenced profile locations and timestamps.
- Validating satellite-derived sea surface temperature products with in-situ profile measurements from the SOOP network.
- Studying ocean heat content changes and water mass properties using time-series of temperature profiles from specific vessel transects.
Strengths
- Data collection spans nearly a full annual cycle from December 2016 to November 2017.
- Profiles cover five distinct ocean regions including the data-sparse Southern Ocean.
- Data underwent quality control procedures by the GTSPP and were submitted by the authoritative CSIRO.
Limitations
- Limited to a single year of data, restricting analysis of long-term climate trends.
- Spatial coverage is constrained to the specific ship tracks of the five contributing vessels, creating gaps.
- The dataset contains only temperature data; salinity information is not included.
Provenance
- Source
- NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), originating from Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).
- Collection Method
- In-situ measurements from expendable bathythermographs (XBTs) deployed from ships participating in the Ship of Opportunity Programme (SOOP).
- Time Range
- 2016-12-15 to 2017-11-11
- Freshness
- Data collection ended in November 2017; the dataset is a static historical snapshot.
- Geography
- Coral Sea, Indian Ocean, Southern Ocean, South Pacific Ocean, Tasman Sea.