Historical Ocean Station and Bathythermograph Data from 1966-1968

Over 30 research vessels, including USCGC Glacier and USNS Silas Bent, collected this oceanographic dataset across 17 major sea regions from 1966-02-19 to 1968-12-17. The National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) processed the data to its standard C100 (Ocean Station) and C128 (Bathythermograph) formats. Principal measurements include temperature and salinity at discrete depth levels, with potential additional parameters like dissolved oxygen, nutrients, and pH.

Use Cases

• Analyzing historical vertical temperature and salinity profiles (temperature, salinity, depth) to establish climate baselines.
• Studying the spatial distribution of ocean chemical parameters like dissolved oxygen, phosphate, and silicate across multiple sea basins.
• Correlating surface meteorological conditions (air temperature, pressure, wind) with subsurface oceanographic measurements from the same station.
• Researching the technological transition in oceanography by comparing data from Nansen casts (95% of observations) and early electronic CTD/STD recorders (5%).

Strengths

• Covers a wide geographic scope with observations from 17 major sea regions, including the Southern Ocean and Philippine Sea.
• Documents a specific technological period with 95% of data from multi-bottle Nansen casts and 5% from early electronic CTD/STD recorders.
• Includes data from a large fleet of over 30 distinct research vessels and platforms, indicating coordinated survey efforts.

Limitations

• Critical metadata such as row count, column names, and exact file size are unavailable from all provided sources.
• The dataset's license information is not specified on any platform.
• A conflict exists for the 'last updated' date: one source lists 2026-03 05 (likely a metadata refresh), while another lists the end of the data collection period, 1968-12-17.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce

Collection Method

Processed by NODC to standard formats from observations made via Nansen casts and early CTD/STD recorders.

Time Range

1966-02-19 to 1968-12-17

Freshness

2026-03-05 23:57:49.935994

Geography

Andaman Sea, Bay of Bengal, Bering Sea, Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, Indian Ocean, Japan Sea, Mediterranean Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, North Pacific Ocean, Philippine Sea, South Atlantic Ocean, South China Sea, South Pacific Ocean, Southern Ocean, Bay of Fundy, Laccadive Sea