Dolphin Cruise Upper Ocean Temperature Profiles from 1971

This dataset contains mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) temperature-depth profiles collected during the DOLPHIN cruise in the North Atlantic Ocean. The data, processed by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) into the standard C128 format, covers a 10-day period in April-May 1971 and is structured as pairs of temperature and depth values recorded at uniform 5-meter intervals. It is published by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Use Cases

• Analyzing the vertical temperature gradient in the upper 285 meters of the ocean for a specific cruise.
• Studying short-term thermal variability in the North Atlantic during spring 1971.
• Validating or calibrating ocean mixed-layer models with historical in-situ profile data.
• Correlating cruise location, date, and time metadata with contemporaneous atmospheric or oceanographic conditions.

Strengths

• Data is processed to a known, documented standard (NODC C128 format) ensuring structural consistency.
• Provides precise temporal (1971-04 27 to 1971-05-06) and spatial (North Atlantic Ocean) context for each profile.
• Temperature measurements are recorded at a uniform, high-resolution 5-meter depth interval.

Limitations

• The dataset's exact size, row count, and specific column names are not provided by any source.
• MBT instrument limitations restrict observations to a maximum depth of approximately 285 meters, capturing only the upper ocean.
• Sources conflict on the 'last updated' metadata, with dates ranging from 1971 to 2026.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce

Collection Method

Collected via mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) instrument during the DOLPHIN cruise and subsequently processed by NODC.

Time Range

1971-04-27 to 1971-05-06

Freshness

2026-04-01 15:29:45.357541

Geography

North Atlantic Ocean