North Pacific Ocean Temperature Profiles from USS Maury

285 meters is the maximum observation depth for this dataset of mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) readings. The data, processed by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC), consists of temperature-depth pairs recorded at uniform 5-meter intervals during a specific cruise from March 30 to April 4, 1968. This structured C128 format dataset provides a snapshot of the upper ocean's thermal conditions from a historical research vessel.

Use Cases

• Analyzing the vertical temperature gradient in the upper 285 meters of the North Pacific Ocean using the paired temperature-depth values.
• Studying short-term thermal variability during the early spring cruise period from March 30 to April 4, 1968.
• Correlating ocean surface layer conditions with specific cruise information, date, position, and time reported for each observation.
• Benchmarking historical MBT instrument data against modern sensor readings for calibration or trend analysis.

Strengths

• Data is formatted to a standardized NODC C128 structure, ensuring consistent interpretation of temperature-depth pairs.
• Observations provide specific temporal coverage from 1968-03-30 to 1968-04-04 for a defined geographical area in the North Pacific.
• Temperature readings are recorded at uniform 5-meter depth intervals, facilitating systematic profile analysis.

Limitations

• The dataset's exact row count, column names, and total size are not provided by any source, limiting precise technical assessment.
• MBT instrument data is restricted to a maximum depth of approximately 285 meters, capturing only the upper ocean thermal structure.
• Platform metadata conflicts on last updated date: datagov reports 2026-03-05, while nasa_earthdata reports the original data date of 1968-04 04.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), organization NOAA_NCEI.

Collection Method

Data gathered using a mechanical bathythermograph (MBT) instrument from the USS Maury and processed by NODC to the standard C128 format.

Time Range

1968-03-30 to 1968-04-04

Freshness

2026-03-05 22:56:25.931993

Geography

North Pacific Ocean