Historical Ocean Temperature Profiles from the 1965 PECOS Expedition

Mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) data documents ocean temperature-depth profiles from the 1965 PECOS cruise across the Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and North Pacific Ocean. The dataset, processed by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) into the C128 standard format, contains observations from a 34-day period in August and September 1965. It is managed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Use Cases

• Analyzing the vertical thermal structure of the upper ocean (up to 285m) using temperature-depth value pairs.
• Studying regional ocean temperature variations by linking cruise position and time data to profile measurements.
• Investigating historical ocean conditions in specific basins using date-stamped observations from the Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and North Pacific.
• Calibrating or validating ocean model outputs for the upper ocean layer with in-situ temperature data recorded at uniform 5-meter intervals.

Strengths

• Data is standardized to the NODC C128 format, ensuring consistent structure for temperature-depth profiles.
• Profiles provide high vertical resolution with temperature recorded at uniform 5-meter depth intervals.
• Observations cover a specific, well-documented 34-day cruise across three major ocean regions.

Limitations

• The maximum observation depth is approximately 285 meters, limiting analysis to the upper ocean layers only.
• Column names and the exact row count are not provided in the available metadata.
• There is a conflict in the 'last updated' date: one platform reports 2026-04-01, while another reports the original data date of 1965-09 12.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce

Collection Method

Mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) instrument measurements processed by NODC to the C128 standard format.

Time Range

1965-08-10 to 1965-09-12

Freshness

2026-04-01 14:58:22.629149

Geography

Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, North Pacific Ocean