Historical Bathythermograph Data from the North Pacific Ocean

Bathythermograph (MBT) data from the vessel J. R. PERRY captures temperature-depth profiles in the North Pacific Ocean from May 25 to May 31, 1966. The dataset, processed by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) into the standard C128 format, consists of paired temperature and depth values recorded at uniform 5-meter intervals. It is managed by NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI).

Use Cases

• Analyzing the thermal structure of the upper ocean (up to 285m) using temperature-depth value pairs.
• Studying short-term temperature variability in the North Pacific Ocean using cruise date, position, and time metadata.
• Calibrating or validating historical ocean models with precisely recorded temperature data at 5m depth intervals.

Strengths

• Data is processed to a standardized NODC format (C128), ensuring a consistent structure.
• Provides a focused temporal snapshot of ocean conditions over a one-week cruise in 1966.
• Temperature data is recorded at uniform depth intervals (5m), facilitating direct comparison and analysis.

Limitations

• Key metrics like row count, column names, and dataset size are unknown across all sources.
• The mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) instrument limits observations to a maximum depth of approximately 285 meters.
• Conflicting 'last updated' dates exist between platforms (2026 vs 1966), casting uncertainty on data currency.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), from the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC).

Collection Method

Collected via mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) instrument during a research cruise and processed to NODC standard C128 format.

Time Range

1966-05-25 to 1966-05-31

Freshness

2026-04-01 15:08:28.262476

Geography

North Pacific Ocean