Seasonal Dissolved Inorganic Carbon Climatology for the Canadian Pacific EEZ (1981-2010)

Seasonal mean dissolved inorganic carbon concentrations for the Canadian Pacific Exclusive Economic Zone, averaged over a 30-year period from 1981 to 2010. The data, produced by Fisheries and Oceans Canada using the British Columbia continental margin model, provides raster layers at 3 km spatial resolution and 47 vertical levels from the surface to 2400 meters. Spring, summer, fall, and winter climatologies are defined based on specific three-month groupings.

Use Cases

• Modeling ocean acidification trends based on seasonal dissolved inorganic carbon concentrations.
• Analyzing vertical and cross-shore carbon gradients in the northeast Pacific based on the 47-level depth data.
• Studying seasonal carbon cycle dynamics based on the defined spring, summer, fall, and winter climatologies.
• Validating regional oceanographic models against the 30-year mean climatology for the Canadian Pacific EEZ.

Strengths

• Data spans a 30-year climatological period from 1981 to 2010, providing a long-term baseline.
• Model results have been evaluated against observations like altimetry and CTD profiles, showing reasonable accuracy for main oceanographic features.
• Provides high vertical resolution with data at up to 47 levels from the surface to 2400 meters and the sea bottom.

Limitations

• The 3 km model resolution is described as too coarse to adequately represent inlets, nearshore areas, and the Strait of Georgia.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment for some analytical tasks.

Provenance

Source

Fisheries and Oceans Canada

Collection Method

Seasonal means from the British Columbia continental margin model (BCCM), averaged over 1981-2010.

Time Range

1981 to 2010 (climatological average)

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-24 09:04:25.139216; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Canadian Pacific Exclusive Economic Zone