North Atlantic Upper Ocean Temperature Profiles from NOAA Ship Albatross IV

North Atlantic Ocean temperature-depth profiles collected by NOAA Ship Albatross IV from March 4 to 13, 1970. The dataset contains mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) observations processed into the NODC standard C128 format, with temperature recorded at uniform 5-meter depth intervals. Data is provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Use Cases

• Analyzing the thermal structure of the upper ocean (up to ~285m) using paired temperature-depth values.
• Studying short-term oceanic variability in the North Atlantic during early March 1970.
• Validating or supplementing historical ocean model reanalyses with precise cruise, date, position, and time metadata.
• Researching instrument-specific data characteristics from mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) collections.

Strengths

• Data is processed to a standardized format (NODC C128), ensuring consistency.
• Provides precise temporal coverage for a 10-day cruise in March 1970.
• Includes core metadata fields: cruise information, date, position, and time for each observation.

Limitations

• Key technical details are unknown: row count, column names, file size, and specific license.
• MBT instrument limits observations to a maximum depth of approximately 285 meters, restricting analysis to the upper ocean.
• Platforms show a significant conflict in 'last updated' date (1970 vs. 2026), casting doubt on metadata maintenance.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce

Collection Method

Mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) instrument measurements processed by NODC.

Time Range

1970-03-04 to 1970-03-13

Freshness

2026-03-05 23:49:41.741765

Geography

North Atlantic Ocean