Historical North Atlantic Ocean Temperature Profiles from J. W. GIBBS

Temperature-depth profiles from the upper ocean layers were collected by the vessel J. W. GIBBS using a mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) in the North Atlantic Ocean. The data is processed into the NODC C128 standard format, with temperature recorded at uniform 5-meter intervals down to a maximum depth of approximately 285 meters. This dataset represents a specific cruise from April to July 1965.

Use Cases

• Analyzing the thermal structure of the upper ocean (0-285m) using paired temperature-depth values.
• Studying seasonal ocean temperature changes in the North Atlantic during spring/summer 1965.
• Validating or calibrating ocean model simulations for historical periods using precise cruise, date, position, and time metadata.

Strengths

• Data is processed to a consistent standard format (NODC C128), ensuring structural uniformity.
• Temperature measurements are recorded at a high-resolution, uniform 5-meter depth interval.
• Each observation includes precise metadata: cruise information, date, position, and time.

Limitations

• The dataset is limited to the upper ocean, with a maximum observation depth of approximately 285 meters.
• Key metadata such as row count, file size, and license are not provided across any source.
• Sources conflict on the 'last updated' date, with one showing a future date (2026-03-06) and another the collection end date (1965-07-09).

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), collected from the vessel J. W. GIBBS.

Collection Method

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

Time Range

1965-04-25 to 1965-07-09

Freshness

2026-03-06 00:05:44.141050

Geography

North Atlantic Ocean