Ryofu Maru II Ocean Carbon and Surface Conditions

Over 21 years of surface underway data from the Ryofu Maru II vessel includes measurements of barometric pressure, sea surface temperature, salinity, and the partial pressure of carbon dioxide in air and water. The data were collected using a CO2 gas analyzer and shower head chamber equilibrator across the North Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Ocean, East China Sea, Philippine Sea, Sea of Japan, and Bismarck Sea. This time-series dataset was collected by researchers from the Japan Meteorological Agency as part of the VOS R/V Ryofu Maru Lines program.

Use Cases

• Analyzing trends in ocean carbon uptake based on partial pressure of carbon dioxide measurements.
• Correlating sea surface temperature with atmospheric carbon dioxide levels across ocean basins.
• Studying regional variability in salinity and barometric pressure from underway ship observations.

Strengths

• Covers a long-term time series from 1989-11-17 to 2011-03-14.
• Data collection used specific, documented instruments: CO2 gas analyzer and shower head chamber equilibrator.
• Appears on multiple authoritative platforms (NASA EarthData, Data.gov), indicating validation and importance.

Limitations

• Key metadata such as row count, specific column names, and license are unknown across all sources.
• The dataset's last update date conflicts between sources (2011-03-14 vs. 2026-03-06).

Provenance

Source

Japan Meteorological Agency; Pollutants Chemical Analysis Center; Marine Division; Global Environment and Marine Department

Collection Method

Collected via underway - surface observations from the Ryofu Maru II vessel during cruise 49RY19891117.

Time Range

1989-11-17 to 2011-03-14

Freshness

2026-03-06 00:11:21.912059

Geography

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