NOAA Ship XBT Temperature-Depth Profiles in the North Atlantic

Temperature-depth profile data collected using expendable bathythermograph (XBT) instruments from NOAA Ship Albatross IV and NOAA Ship Delaware II. The dataset contains pairs of temperature-depth values recorded at non-uniform depths to define the temperature curve, processed to the NODC C116/C118 standard format. It covers a specific cruise period in the North Atlantic Ocean from November 1983 to February 1984.

Use Cases

• Analyzing vertical ocean temperature structure using paired temperature-depth values.
• Studying temporal changes in the North Atlantic's thermal profile during the winter of 1983-1984.
• Calibrating or validating ocean models with historical in-situ temperature observations.
• Researching data processing standards for historic XBT data within the NODC Ocean Profile Data Base.

Strengths

• Data processed to a documented NODC standard format (C116/C118) for consistency.
• Specific time range (1983-11 - 1984-02) and geography (North Atlantic Ocean) are clearly defined.
• Instrument capabilities are detailed, noting standard profile depths of 450m or 760m and special instrument depths to 1830m.

Limitations

• Exact row count, column names, and dataset size are unknown across all sources.
• The last updated date conflicts between platforms (2026-03-05 on Data.gov vs. 1984-02-23 on NASA EarthData).

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce

Collection Method

Data collected via expendable bathythermograph (XBT) instruments from NOAA ships, processed by NODC.

Time Range

1983-11-17 to 1984-02-23

Freshness

2026-03-05 23:39:02.031884

Geography

North Atlantic Ocean