Ocean Glider Physical Profile Data from Gulf of Mexico Deployment

Sam glider collected measurements of temperature, salinity, conductivity, and density in the Gulf of Mexico over a two-week period in 2016. The University of South Florida deployed the instrument, and data were archived by NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information. This deployment specifically aimed to gather acoustic and water column data for fish stock assessment support.

Use Cases

• Analyzing temperature and salinity profiles over time to identify water mass boundaries and ocean fronts.
• Correlating conductivity and density measurements with acoustic datasets to model fish habitat suitability.
• Mapping the glider's geospatial trajectory against physical oceanographic properties for Lagrangian analysis.
• Validating regional ocean models using in-situ time-series data of water column parameters.

Strengths

• Data includes multiple core physical oceanographic properties (temperature, salinity, conductivity, density).
• Time-series coverage spans a continuous 15-day deployment from July 29 to August 12, 2016.
• Data underwent quality checks for file format compliance by the IOOS National Glider Data Assembly Center.

Limitations

• Sample size and spatial resolution are unknown, as specific row counts and column details are not provided.
• Data is from a single glider deployment, limiting geographic and temporal generalizability.
• Data is from 2016, which may limit its relevance for studying recent oceanographic conditions.

Provenance

Source

University of South Florida (deployer), archived by NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI).

Collection Method

Collected by an autonomous underwater glider (Sam) and submitted via the Integrated Ocean Observing System's National Glider Data Assembly Center (IOOS NGDAC).

Time Range

2016-07-29 to 2016-08-12

Freshness

null

Geography

Gulf of Mexico