Weatherbird II XBT Temperature-Depth Profiles in the North Atlantic

These data contain ocean temperature-depth profiles collected using expendable bathythermograph (XBT) instruments from the vessel WEATHERBIRD II. The dataset covers a period from April 1985 to July 1987 in the North Atlantic Ocean. Data were processed and archived by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) in its standard C116 format.

Use Cases

• Analyzing vertical ocean temperature structure by pairing temperature and depth values from each profile.
• Studying temporal changes in the upper ocean heat content from 1985 to 1987.
• Investigating spatial patterns of sea temperature in the North Atlantic using reported position data.
• Comparing inflection-point sampling in this XBT data to uniform-interval data from other instruments like MBTs.

Strengths

• Profiles capture temperature at non-uniform 'inflection points', designed to accurately define the temperature curve with minimal data points.
• Data coverage spans over two years, from 1985-04-25 to 1987-07-18.
• Processed to a recognized historical standard (NODC C116 format) by a authoritative organization (NOAA NCEI).

Limitations

• The exact number of profiles (rows) and the full column schema are not provided by any source.
• Sources conflict on the last updated date, with one listing 2026-04-01 and another listing the final collection date of 1987-07 18.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), from NODC Accession 8800065.

Collection Method

Collected via expendable bathythermograph (XBT) instruments deployed from the research vessel WEATHERBIRD II.

Time Range

1985-04-25 to 1987-07-18

Freshness

2026-04-01 15:31:39.363760

Geography

North Atlantic Ocean