XBT Temperature-Depth Profiles from NW Atlantic Ships in 1991

Two ships, OLEANDER and YANKEE CLIPPER, collected 1,091 temperature-depth profiles in the NW Atlantic from January 5 to December 11, 1991. The data, gathered via expendable bathythermographs (XBTs) as part of the Ship Of Opportunity Programme, records temperature at non-uniform depths down to a maximum of 1,830 meters. Each profile includes cruise information, position, date, and time.

Use Cases

• Analyzing vertical ocean temperature structure based on inflection-point depth profiles.
• Studying seasonal temperature changes in the NW Atlantic using the 1991 time series.
• Validating ocean circulation models with in-situ temperature data from specific ship tracks.
• Assessing historical baseline conditions for climate change studies in the region.

Strengths

• Provides a specific, year-long time series from January 5 to December 11, 1991.
• Contains high-resolution vertical profiles, with depth measurements recorded at inflection points to define the temperature curve.
• Data is available on multiple platforms (nasa_earthdata, datagov), indicating established provenance and accessibility.

Limitations

• Key metadata is missing: exact row count, column names, file size, and license are not provided.
• There is a conflict in the 'last updated' field between 1991-12-11 and 2026-04-01, creating uncertainty about recent maintenance.
• The dataset's scale is limited to two ships and a single year, which may restrict broader spatial or temporal analyses.

Provenance

Source

Robert Benway, National Marine Fisheries Service, Narragansett, RI; submitted on tape to NOAA NCEI.

Collection Method

Collected via expendable bathythermograph (XBT) instruments from ships OLEANDER and YANKEE CLIPPER as part of the Ship Of Opportunity Programme (SOOP).

Time Range

1991-01-05 to 1991-12-11

Freshness

2026-04-01 15:07:38.712653

Geography

NW Atlantic Ocean (limit -40 W)