North Atlantic Ocean Temperature Profiles from Atlantis II Cruise

North Atlantic Ocean temperature-depth profiles collected by the research vessel Atlantis II during a 1970 cruise. Data is processed into the NODC standard C128 format, containing pairs of temperature and depth values recorded at 5-meter intervals. The dataset is managed by NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information.

Use Cases

• Analyzing the thermal structure of the upper ocean (up to 285m) using temperature-depth pairs.
• Studying spatial and temporal temperature variations in the North Atlantic during October-December 1970.
• Correlating cruise information, date, position, and time with observed temperature profiles.

Strengths

• Data is processed to a recognized standard format (NODC C128) for consistency.
• Temperature measurements are recorded at uniform 5-meter depth intervals, enabling structured analysis.
• Provides specific cruise, date, position, and time metadata for each observation.

Limitations

• Maximum observation depth is approximately 285 meters, limiting analysis to the upper ocean only.
• Key metadata such as row count, column names, and license are not provided by any source.
• Platforms disagree on the 'last updated' date (2026-03-05 vs. 1970-12-13), creating uncertainty about maintenance.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI).

Collection Method

Mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) instrument measurements processed by NODC.

Time Range

1970-10 31 to 1970-12-13

Freshness

2026-03-05 22:35:29.439691

Geography

North Atlantic Ocean, along the Atlantis II cruise track.