North Pacific Ocean Temperature Profiles from 1963 MBT Cruise

North Pacific Ocean bathythermograph data collected aboard the KING from May to August 1963. The dataset contains temperature-depth profiles processed by the National Oceanographic Data Center into the standard C128 format. It captures the thermal structure of the ocean's upper layers during a specific summer cruise.

Use Cases

• Analyzing seasonal thermal stratification in the upper ocean using temperature-depth pairs.
• Studying spatial temperature gradients across the cruise track using reported position data.
• Investigating diurnal or short-term temperature variations using recorded date and time for each observation.
• Calibrating or validating ocean mixed-layer models with historical in-situ profile data.

Strengths

• Data is processed to a documented standard format (NODC C128) ensuring consistency.
• Profiles have uniform 5-meter depth intervals, facilitating comparative analysis.
• Covers a specific temporal range (1963-05 15 to 1963-08-09) for a focused study period.

Limitations

• Maximum observation depth is approximately 285 meters, limiting analysis to the ocean's upper layers.
• Key metadata such as row count, file size, and specific column names are unavailable from the sources.
• Conflicting 'last updated' dates exist between platforms (2026-04-01 vs. 1963-08-09).

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), from NODC processing.

Collection Method

Collected using Mechanical Bathythermograph (MBT) instruments during a cruise.

Time Range

1963-05-15 to 1963 08-09

Freshness

2026-04-01 15:03:20.874163

Geography

North Pacific Ocean