Mechanical Bathythermograph Data from North Atlantic Voyage

Bathythermograph (MBT) data from the SEARCHER vessel provides temperature-depth profiles for the upper ocean layers in the North Atlantic Ocean. The dataset contains observations processed by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) into the standard C128 format, covering a one-month period from November to December 1964. This data is useful for studying the thermal structure of the ocean's upper 285 meters.

Use Cases

• Analyzing the vertical thermal structure of the upper ocean using temperature-depth value pairs recorded at 5-meter intervals.
• Studying seasonal or short-term temperature variability in the North Atlantic during late 1964.
• Correlating ocean surface thermal conditions with cruise information, date, position, and time metadata for each observation.
• Validating or supplementing models of historical upper-ocean heat content in a specific region.

Strengths

• Data is processed to a known standard format (NODC C128), ensuring structural consistency.
• Provides a focused temporal snapshot with a clear one-month observation period from 1964-11-18 to 1964-12-17.
• Records data at uniform depth intervals (5 meters), facilitating systematic analysis of the water column.

Limitations

• Key technical details are missing, including row count, file size, and the complete column schema.
• The instrument's maximum depth of ~285 meters limits analysis to the upper ocean layers only.
• Conflicting 'last updated' metadata exists between platforms (2026 vs. 1964), casting doubt on provenance maintenance.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce

Collection Method

Observations gathered using a Mechanical Bathythermograph (MBT) instrument from the SEARCHER vessel and processed by NODC.

Time Range

1964-11-18 to 1964-12-17

Freshness

2026-03-05 22:39:25.557823

Geography

North Atlantic Ocean