SmartBuoy West Gabbard: Hourly Ocean Nutrient and Phytoplankton Measurements

West Gabbard, located at 51.9803 N, 2.0828 E, provides in-situ oceanographic measurements from a SmartBuoy operational since August 2002. The dataset includes hourly nitrate readings, daily nitrate and silicate lab analyses, and twice-hourly phytoplankton biomass estimates from chlorophyll fluorescence. Data is telemetered every two hours via satellite from instruments including a nutrient analyser, water sampler, fluorometer, and an environmental logger.

Use Cases

• Modeling phytoplankton bloom dynamics based on chlorophyll fluorescence measurements.
• Analyzing seasonal nutrient cycles based on hourly nitrate and daily silicate concentration data.
• Correlating water quality parameters like temperature and conductivity with biological activity.
• Studying sediment transport and light penetration effects on marine productivity.

Strengths

• Provides long-term temporal coverage from a single location, with data collection starting in August 2002.
• Includes multiple measurement frequencies, from twice-hourly to daily, for key biological and chemical parameters.
• Data is collected via in-situ instruments and telemetered regularly via satellite, suggesting near-real-time availability.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment for large-scale modeling.
• Last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.

Provenance

Source

Government Digital Service

Collection Method

In-situ measurements from a SmartBuoy platform using NAS-3X nutrient analyser, WMS-2 water sampler, fluorometer, and ESM2 logger, with ORBCOMM satellite telemetry.

Time Range

August 2002 to present (operational).

Freshness

Data is described as still being operational, but specific last update is unknown.

Geography

A single marine location at 51.9803 N, -2.0828 E (West Gabbard).