Gulf of Mexico Upper Ocean Temperature Profiles from 1962

285 meters is the maximum depth for observations in this dataset of mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) data collected from the vessel HIDALGO. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration processed the data into the NODC C128 format, which records temperature at uniform 5-meter depth intervals. Measurements were taken over a five-day period in January 1962.

Use Cases

• Analyzing the vertical temperature structure of the upper ocean up to 285m depth.
• Studying short-term thermal variability in the Gulf of Mexico using date, time, and position data.
• Calibrating or validating ocean models with historical in-situ temperature-depth profile pairs.
• Investigating seasonal or climatic trends in near-surface ocean layers from historical records.

Strengths

• Data is processed to a known standard format (NODC C128) ensuring structured temperature-depth pairs.
• Provides precise temporal coverage for a specific cruise from 1962-01-16 to 1962-01-21.
• Temperature values are recorded at consistent 5-meter depth intervals, facilitating uniform analysis.

Limitations

• Key metadata such as row count, column names, and exact file size are unavailable from all sources.
• The instrument's maximum depth of ~285m limits analysis to the upper ocean only, excluding deeper thermal structures.
• Conflicting 'last updated' dates exist between platforms (2026 vs 1962), creating uncertainty about metadata currency.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce

Collection Method

Mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) instrument measurements processed by NODC to the C128 format.

Time Range

1962-01-16 to 1962-01-21

Freshness

2026-04-01 15:00:02.385749

Geography

Gulf of Mexico