Historical Ocean Temperature Profiles from Scripps Pier

Mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) data captures temperature-depth profiles from Scripps Pier in the North Pacific Ocean. The dataset contains observations processed to the NODC standard C128 format, covering a nearly five-year period from November 1963 to August 1968. It was collected and processed by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Use Cases

• Analyzing seasonal and interannual temperature changes in the upper 285 meters of the coastal North Pacific.
• Calibrating or validating historical ocean model simulations using precise temperature-depth pairs recorded at 5-meter intervals.
• Studying the methodological evolution of oceanographic data collection via mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) instruments.
• Investigating coastal ocean thermal dynamics near a major research pier (Scripps) with associated cruise, date, position, and time metadata.

Strengths

• Data is processed to a standardized format (NODC C128), ensuring consistency for analysis.
• Provides a multi-year time series (1963-1968) for studying temporal patterns in ocean temperature.
• Records temperature at uniform 5-meter depth intervals, allowing for structured profile comparisons.

Limitations

• Key quantitative details like row count, file size, and specific column names are unavailable from all sources.
• Instrument limitation restricts observations to a maximum depth of approximately 285 meters, capturing only the upper ocean layer.
• Conflicting 'last updated' metadata between platforms (2026-03-05 on Data.gov vs. 1968-08-31 on NASA Earthdata) creates uncertainty about recent modifications.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC).

Collection Method

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

Time Range

1963-11-02 to 1968-08-31

Freshness

2026-03-05 23:51:41.623962

Geography

Scripps Pier, North Pacific Ocean.