DOLPHIN MBT Upper Ocean Temperature Profiles from 1969

NOAA_NCEI provides bathythermograph (MBT) data from the DOLPHIN cruise in the North Atlantic Ocean on August 20, 1969. The dataset contains temperature-depth profile pairs recorded at uniform 5-meter intervals down to a maximum depth of approximately 285 meters. Data has been processed into the NODC standard C128 format, which includes cruise information, date, position, and time for each observation.

Use Cases

• Analyzing the vertical temperature gradient in the upper 285 meters of the ocean on a specific date.
• Studying historical ocean thermal conditions for climate model validation using temperature-depth pairs.
• Mapping a single-day snapshot of near-surface ocean heat content in the North Atlantic region.
• Examining data collection standards and instrument characteristics of the Mechanical Bathythermograph (MBT).

Strengths

• Data is processed to a known standard format (NODC C128), ensuring structural consistency.
• Temperature measurements are recorded at uniform 5-meter depth intervals, facilitating direct comparison.
• Each observation includes associated metadata such as cruise, date, position, and time.

Limitations

• The dataset is limited to a single day of observations (1969-08 20), providing no temporal trend.
• MBT instrument constraints limit profiling to the upper ocean only, with a maximum depth of ~285 meters.
• Key quantitative details like total row count, file size, and specific column names are unavailable across all sources.

Provenance

Source

NOAA_NCEI (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Centers for Environmental Information).

Collection Method

Collected using a Mechanical Bathythermograph (MBT) instrument during the DOLPHIN cruise and processed by NODC.

Time Range

1969-08-20 to 1969-08-20

Freshness

2026-03-05 23:02:10.078588

Geography

North Atlantic Ocean