HMNZS Otago Bathythermograph Temperature Profiles in the Tasman Sea

Temperature-depth profiles from mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) casts collected by HMNZS Otago in the Tasman Sea between October 1964 and February 1968. The data, processed by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) into the standard C128 format, consist of paired temperature-depth values recorded at uniform 5-meter intervals to a maximum depth of approximately 285 meters. This dataset provides a record of the thermal structure of the upper ocean layers during a specific historical period.

Use Cases

• Analyzing historical temperature gradients in the upper 285 meters of the Tasman Sea.
• Studying seasonal or interannual variability of the ocean's mixed layer using the time-series of cruise dates and positions.
• Validating ocean model simulations of the Tasman Sea's thermal structure with in-situ profile data.
• Correlating surface ocean conditions with atmospheric data using the reported date, time, and position for each observation.

Strengths

• Data is processed to a known, documented standard (NODC C128 format) ensuring consistent structure.
• Provides a multi-year time series from a specific vessel and region, covering from 1964-10-05 to 1968-02-22.
• Temperature measurements are recorded at a consistent, high-resolution vertical interval of 5 meters.

Limitations

• Instrument limitation restricts observations to the upper ocean only, with a maximum depth of ~285 m.
• Critical metadata such as row count, file size, and specific column names are unavailable from the provided sources.
• There is a conflict in the 'last updated' metadata: one platform reports 2026-03 05, while another reports the data's end date of 1968-02-22.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce (via NODC/NCEI).

Collection Method

Mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) instrument casts from HMNZS Otago, processed to NODC standard format.

Time Range

1964-10-05 to 1968-02-22

Freshness

2026-03-05 23:57:27.855788

Geography

Tasman Sea