Southern Ocean Temperature Profiles from Ship-Based XBTs in 2018

Oceanographic water temperature profiles were collected from expendable bathythermographs (XBTs) aboard three ships in the Southern Ocean and adjoining seas. The dataset contains quality-controlled observations from the Global Temperature and Salinity Profile Programme (GTSPP) and Ship Observations Team's Ship of Opportunity Programme (SOT SOOP). Australia's CSIRO submitted the data, which covers a specific period from February 1 to March 17, 2018.

Use Cases

• Analyze vertical temperature structure from XBT profiles to study ocean heat content in the Southern Ocean.
• Correlate temperature observations with specific ship tracks and platforms like JOSEPHINE MAERSK and L'ASTROLABE for platform-specific bias analysis.
• Use the quality-controlled GTSPP data for validating satellite-derived sea surface temperature products in high-latitude regions.
• Investigate short-term temperature variability in the Coral Sea, Indian Ocean, and Tasman Sea during the austral summer of 2018.

Strengths

• Data are quality-controlled as part of the established Global Temperature and Salinity Profile Programme (GTSPP).
• Observations cover multiple ocean basins (Coral Sea, Indian Ocean, Southern Ocean, South Pacific Ocean, Tasman Sea) from a single campaign.

Limitations

• The temporal coverage is limited to a short 45-day period in early 2018, limiting analysis of seasonal or long-term trends.
• The dataset is restricted to observations from only three specific ship platforms, which may not provide spatially comprehensive coverage.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI Accession 0172675), submitted by Australia's CSIRO.

Collection Method

Collected from expendable bathythermographs (XBTs) deployed from ships as part of the Ship Observations Team's Ship of Opportunity Programme.

Time Range

2018-02-01 to 2018-03-17

Freshness

Data collection ended on 2018-03-17; the dataset is a static snapshot with no stated update frequency.

Geography

Southern Ocean and adjoining seas, including the Coral Sea, Indian Ocean, South Pacific Ocean, and Tasman Sea.