Ryofu Maru Surface Ocean Carbon Dioxide and Physical Properties

Surface underway data from the Japanese vessel Ryofu Maru provides measurements of carbon dioxide partial pressure in air and water, sea surface temperature, salinity, and barometric pressure. The dataset spans a 19-year period from 1995 to 2013 across the North Pacific Ocean, Philippine Sea, East China Sea, Sea of Japan, and South Pacific Ocean. It was collected by the Japan Meteorological Agency using carbon dioxide gas analyzers and thermosalinographs.

Use Cases

• Analyzing trends in oceanic pCO2 to understand carbon sink variability based on time-series measurements.
• Modeling air-sea CO2 flux using concurrent measurements of atmospheric and water partial pressure.
• Correlating sea surface temperature and salinity with carbon dioxide fugacity to study physical drivers.
• Validating satellite-derived sea surface temperature and salinity products with in-situ underway data.

Strengths

• Covers a long-term, nearly two-decade observational period from 1995-07-16 to 2013-09-13.
• Includes directly measured, co-located variables critical for carbon cycle studies: pCO2 in air and water, SST, salinity, and pressure.
• Data is part of a recognized international time-series program (VOS) and hosted by authoritative repositories (NCEI, CDIAC).

Limitations

• Column names and precise data structure are not specified in the available metadata.
• The dataset is split across multiple platform entries (NCEI accessions) with potential for duplication or inconsistent formatting.
• No explicit license, row counts, or file size information is provided.

Provenance

Source

Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA); Pollutants Chemical Analysis Center; Marine Division; Global Environment and Marine Department.

Collection Method

Surface underway observations collected from the vessel Ryofu Maru using carbon dioxide gas analyzers, shower head chamber equilibrators, and thermosalinographs.

Time Range

1995-07-16 to 2013-09-13

Freshness

2026-03-05 22:41:16.074346

Geography

North Pacific Ocean, Philippine Sea, East China Sea (Tung Hai), Sea of Japan, South Pacific Ocean.