ARMORIQUE FerryBox: Carbon Chemistry in the English Channel

Surface underway data from the vessel ARMORIQUE provides a nine-month time series of key ocean carbon parameters across the English Channel. Collected via a FerryBox system with a carbon dioxide gas analyzer, the dataset includes measurements of dissolved inorganic carbon, partial pressure of carbon dioxide, total alkalinity, and salinity. These observations support the study of coastal carbon cycling and ocean acidification dynamics.

Use Cases

• Calculating ocean acidification trends based on pCO2 and alkalinity measurements.
• Modeling air-sea CO2 exchange fluxes using surface underway pCO2 data.
• Assessing coastal carbon system variability from concurrent DIC, TA, and salinity records.
• Validating satellite-derived salinity products with in-situ FerryBox salinity data.

Strengths

• Data collection spans a nine-month period from March to December 2013, capturing seasonal variability.
• Includes four directly measured parameters critical for carbonate system calculations.
• Hosted on multiple authoritative platforms (NOAA Data.gov, NASA Earthdata), indicating vetting and persistence.

Limitations

• Key metadata such as row count, file size, specific column names, and license are unreported across all sources.
• The dataset's temporal coverage is limited to a single year.
• Documentation gaps prevent assessment of data resolution or quality control procedures.

Provenance

Source

Yann Bozec (CNRS) and Pierre Marrec (Roscoff Biological Station)

Collection Method

Surface underway observations collected from the vessel ARMORIQUE using a Carbon dioxide (CO2) gas analyzer and other instruments as part of a FerryBox system.

Time Range

2013-03-15 to 2013-12-22

Freshness

2026-03-05 (metadata update on Data.gov)

Geography

English Channel