EVANS Bathythermograph Temperature-Depth Profiles from 1962

June 25 to September 18, 1962, this dataset contains mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) observations from the research vessel EVANS in the North Pacific Ocean. It provides temperature-depth profile pairs recorded at uniform 5-meter intervals to a maximum depth of approximately 285 meters, processed by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) into the standard C128 format. The data is hosted by NOAA NCEI and is also listed on NASA Earthdata.

Use Cases

• Analyzing the vertical thermal gradient of the upper ocean using paired temperature-depth values.
• Studying seasonal ocean surface layer changes during the summer of 1962 with date and time stamps.
• Mapping regional temperature profiles in the North Pacific using reported position (latitude/longitude) data.
• Calibrating or validating ocean mixed-layer models with historical in-situ bathythermograph measurements.

Strengths

• Data is processed to a documented standard format (NODC C128), ensuring structural consistency.
• Provides a focused temporal snapshot from a specific research cruise over 86 days in 1962.
• Measurements are recorded at uniform 5-meter depth intervals, facilitating systematic analysis.
• Cross-platform presence (NOAA NCEI and NASA Earthdata) indicates recognized archival importance.

Limitations

• Maximum observation depth is limited to ~285m, restricting analysis to the ocean's upper layers only.
• Key metadata such as exact row count, column names, file size, and license are unavailable across all sources.
• The dataset's age (1962) may limit direct comparison with modern high-resolution sensor data.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), from the research vessel EVANS.

Collection Method

In-situ measurements collected using a mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) instrument and processed by NODC.

Time Range

1962-06-25 to 1962-09-18

Freshness

2026-03-05 22:36:09.785727

Geography

North Pacific Ocean