WOOD: Worldwide Ocean Optics Database with Chlorophyll and Bathymetry

A large volume of ocean optics data collected from institutions worldwide, including the Bedford Institute of Oceanography and NOAA. The database primarily contains chlorophyll pigment profiles and diffuse attenuation coefficient profiles, merged with 5 nmi resolution bathymetry data. It is funded by the Office of Naval Research and managed by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.

Use Cases

• Model development and validation based on chlorophyll and attenuation coefficient profiles.
• Field test planning using geospatial data merged with bathymetry for depth-specific searches.
• Environmental predictions for naval operations based on temperature, salinity, and optical properties.
• Area characterizations using data on absorption, scattering, and irradiance coefficients.

Strengths

• Data is merged with the 5 nmi resolution DBDB5 ocean bathymetry database.
• Includes quality checks where possible, as mentioned in the description.
• Contains multiple key oceanographic variables like beam attenuation, backscattering, temperature, and salinity.

Limitations

• Row count, file formats, and column-level documentation are unknown.
• Last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.
• Some data have dissemination restrictions, such as being limited to DOD and DOD contractors.

Provenance

Source

Office of Naval Research and Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory

Collection Method

Data collected from numerous institutions worldwide, converted to a single format, and stored in an Oracle database.

Geography

Worldwide ocean coverage, with data locations shown on maps.