Historical Upper Ocean Temperature Profiles from QUICKMATCH Cruises

Approximately 285 meters is the maximum depth for temperature-depth profile pairs recorded at uniform 5-meter intervals. This dataset contains mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) observations from the QUICKMATCH vessel across multiple seas in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. The National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) processed the data into its standard C128 format for the period between September 1956 and March 1961.

Use Cases

• Analyzing the thermal structure of the upper ocean (up to ~285m) using paired temperature-depth values.
• Studying spatial temperature variations across seas like the South China Sea, Coral Sea, and Indian Ocean.
• Investigating seasonal or interannual temperature changes in the late 1950s using cruise date and time data.
• Mapping historical oceanographic cruise tracks and sampling locations using reported position information.

Strengths

• Data is processed to a standardized format (NODC C128), ensuring consistent structure.
• Covers a multi-year time range from 1956 to 1961 across 11 distinct sea regions.
• Provides detailed metadata for each observation, including cruise, date, position, and time.

Limitations

• Column names and the exact row count are not provided by any source.
• Instrument limitation restricts data to the upper ocean, with a maximum depth of approximately 285 meters.
• Sources conflict on the 'last updated' metadata (2026-04-01 vs. 1961-03-26), creating uncertainty about provenance updates.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce; processed by NODC.

Collection Method

Temperature-depth profiles gathered using mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) instruments during the QUICKMATCH cruise.

Time Range

1956-09 05 to 1961-03-26

Freshness

2026-04-01 15:20:40.729146

Geography

Andaman Sea or Burma Sea, Coral Sea, East China Sea, Great Australian Bight, Gulf of Thailand, Indian Ocean, Japan Sea, North Pacific Ocean, Philippine Sea, South China Sea, Tasman Sea.