Selected Data for Oceanographic Research

Definitions
Ship Observations
- Comprehensive Ocean-Atmosphere Data Set (COADS)
- Smaller Collections, ocean profiles, Ocean Weather Ships, etc
Sea Surface Temperature
Surface Wind and Wind Stress
Air-sea Heat Budgets
Ocean Depth and Land Elevation
Moored and Drifting Buoys
Sea Ice
Data Derived from Satellite Sensors
Subsurface Climatology / Model Input and Output
Datasets from Operational Atmospheric Analyses
Miscellaneous
Data Requests and Further Information

1. Definitions and keys

yr-mo: A time series in which each year is represented by 12 individual monthly averages.
clim: Long time averages intended to estimate smooth climatology.
n x n: grid resolution, (latitude x longitude) in degrees.
DSnnn.n: NCAR Data Support Section data set reference number (see here for more information).
MB: Megabyte, 1 x 10**6 eight bit bytes.
GB: Gigabyte, 1 x 10**9 eight bit bytes.

2. Ship Observations

DS541.2 :>Global Ocean Precip. Characteristics from Shipboard Reports

Geographic Coverage :: global, 2.5x2.5 degree resolution
Temporal Coverage :: monthly clim.
Dataset Size :: 12 MB
Description :: Grant Petty, from Purdue University, used the present-weather code values from shipboard reports to evaluate the frequencies and characteristics of global oceanic precipitation. The 1958-1991 COADS CMR records were the database.

DS272.0 :>Salder's Tropical Marine Climate Atlas

Geographic Coverage :: 29N-29S, 2x2, global tropical band
Temporal Coverage :: monthly
Dataset Size :: 10 MBytes
Description :: Using COADS data for 1900-1979 Sadler, at the University of Hawaii, derived climatological monthly mean grids of wind velocity componets, SST, SLP, and stress. These data were published in the Topical Marine Climate Atlas, UHMET 87-01 and 87-02.

DS535.0 :>Observations from Ocean Weather Ships

Geographic Coverage :: approx. 14 locations
Temporal Coverage :: 1945 - 1992
Dataset Size :: 470 MBytes
Description :: Records from permanent weather ships, A, B, C, D, E, H, I, J, K, M, N, P, T, and V. Variables include sea level pressure, air temperature, sea surface temperature, humidity, cloud cover, wind speed and direction, and wave data. Some subsurface profile data (XBT and ocean stations) are also available

DS542.0 :>NODC archives of XBT, MBT, SBT, SD, and Co22 data

Geographic Coverage :

global oceans

Temporal Coverage :

1900 - 1993

Description :

A copy of the five major surface and sub-surface ocean data sets from National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC)




Comments :
Files:     XBT     expendable bathythermograph records, approx. 943K
                   observations, primarily 1966 - 1993, 299 MB.

           SBT     expendable bathythermograph records at selected 
                   levels, 118 MB, 302K observations

           MBT     mechanical bathythermograph records, approx. 1005K
                   observations, 1941 - 1980, 354 MB.

            SD     Oceanographic Station Data, approx. 923K observations,
                   hydrographic water sampling casts (Nansen and
                   rosette), 1900-1993, 1633 MB.

          Co22     Compressed (low resolution) CTD/STD oceanographic
                   station data, approx. 127K observation, primarily
                   1969 - 1991, 353 MBytes

DS543.0 :>Reid-Mantyla selected deep ocean hydrographic stations

Geographic Coverage :: global oceans
Temporal Coverage :: 1900 - 1994
Dataset Size :: 26.5 MB
Description :: Reid and Mantyla of Scripps Institution of Oceanography, have compiled a set of over 12000 hydrographic stations from the full NODC archive and other archives from personal contacts. The stations, selected for general circulation studies, are of very high quality and have measurement to near the ocean bottom.

DS285.0 :>Levitus' World Ocean Atlas, 1994

Geographic Coverage :

global analyzed 1 x 1 grids and observed profiles

Temporal Coverage :

based on data approx. 1900 - 1992

Dataset Size :

928 MB analyzed, 2278 MB observed

Description :

The World Ocean Atlas 1994 was developed at the Ocean Climate Laboratory (OCL) at NODC under the direction of Sydney Levitus. It includes both analyzed and observed data products as described below.




Comments :
     1) All the observed level profile data:                  2278 MBytes
     2) All profile data interpolated to 33 standard levels:   962 MBytes
     3) 1x1 degree analyzed data :

        PARAMETER                       ANNUAL*    SEASON**     MONTH***

        Temperature                          X          X           X 
        Salinity                             X          X           X 
        Dissolved oxygen                     X          X
        Apparent Oxygen Utilization          X          X
        Oxygen saturation                    X          X 
        Phosphate                            X 
        Nitrate                              X         
        Silicate                             X

        *ANNUAL - composite of all data regardless of season or year
                  : 33 levels   :17 MB per file
       **SEASON - data composite based on seasons following the Northern 
                  Hemisphere convention.  The seasons are defined as:
                  Winter (January - March)
                  Spring (April - June)
                  Summer (July - September)
                  Fall (October - December)
                  : 33 levels, 17 MB per file
      *** MONTH - data composite for each month.  January through December
                  analysis for 19 depth levels only (0-1000 m)
                  : 10 MB per file

      4) 5x5 degree analyzed data at 33 levels: .7 MB per file,
             means, standard deviation, and number of observations are
             available in separate files.
 
            Parameter     Annual  Season
            ---------     ------  ------
               T,             x       x   
               S,             x       x  
               OX,            x       x  
               AOU,           x       x  
               OX. SAT.,      x       x 
               NO3,           x         
               PHO4,          x         
               SIO3,          x         

  CONKRIGHT, M.E., S. LEVITUS AND T.P. BOYER.  1994.
  WORLD OCEAN ATLAS 1994 VOLUME 1: NUTRIENTS.  NOAA ATLAS 
  NESDIS 1.  150 PP.
  
  LEVITUS S. AND T.P. BOYER.  1994A. WORLD OCEAN ATLAS 1994
  VOLUME 2: OXYGEN. NOAA ATLAS NESDIS 2.  186 PP.

  LEVITUS S., R. BURGETT AND T.P. BOYER.  1994B. WORLD OCEAN
  ATLAS 1994 VOLUME 3:SALINITY. NOAA ATLAS NESDIS 3.  99 PP.
 
  LEVITUS S. AND T.P. BOYER.  1994C. WORLD OCEAN ATLAS 1994
  VOLUME 4 TEMPERATURE.  NOAA ATLAS NESDIS 4.  117 PP.

DS285.1 :>Southern Ocean Atlas Data; observation and gridded fields

Geographic Coverage :: 80S - 30S, (1 x 2 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: based on data 1900 - 1975
Dataset Size :: 25 MBytes
Description :: Gordon (Columbia University), Molinelli (Science Applications Inc.), and Baker (Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory) assembled the high-quality station data from the Southern Ocean found in the NODC archive. These individual stations (over 6000) are available (11 MBytes). The data were also interpolated to a uniform grid at 47 levels (14 MBytes). The variables include; temperature, salinity, sigma-t, silicate, oxygen, phosphate, and nitrate. Further information and contour maps are given in "Southern Ocean Atlas, published by the Columbia University Press".

DS533.0 :>USSR Marine Ship Archive

Geographic Coverage :: global oceans
Temporal Coverage :: 1888 - 1990
Dataset Size :: 2.7 GB
Description :: This data set is comprise mostly of oberservation taken from Soviet Marine ships. More than 25 million reports were gathered for the century long period. To varying degree the reports have variables, SST, wind speed and direction, SLP, air temperature, dew point, cloud cover and type, and precipitation.

DS545.0 :>Hydrographic Data from Warm Core Ring 82-B, by Stalcup, Joyce, Barbour and Dunworth, July 1985

Geographic Coverage :: Gulf Stream region
Temporal Coverage :: 1982
Dataset Size :: 9 MBytes
Description :: Observed ocean data taken on three separte surveys of a warm core ring north of the Gulf Stream during 1982. Pressure, temperature, salinity, and dissolved oxygen are give at approximately 2 decibar interval at 180 hydrographic stations. Survey times are April, June, and August of 1982.

DS545.1 :>Gulf Stream Crest Anatomy Hydrograhic Survey - Fall 1988, by Rossby

Geographic Coverage :: Gulf Stream region
Temporal Coverage :: 1988
Dataset Size :: 4 MBytes
Description :: 91 hydrographic stations comprise this detail survey of a Gulf Stream meander Crest in the fall of 1988. Pressure, temperature, salinity, and dissolved oxygen are given at about 2 meter intervals.

DS547.0 :>Inter-american Tropical Tuna Commission ship observations

Geographic Coverage :: tropical Pacific Ocean
Temporal Coverage :: 1979-1994
Dataset Size :: approx. 5MB/year Descripiton : SST, wind, and weather observations taken from tuna fishing vessels. Povided by the IATTC through F. Miller at Scripps. This is a proprietary dataset and special permission is required for data access.

3. Sea Surface Temperature

DS251.0 :>EPOCS, Equatorial Pacific Ocean Climate Studies datasets

Geographic Coverage :: tropical global ocean (30S-30N), 2 x 2 grids
Temporal Coverage :: yr-mo, 1950 - 1979
Dataset Size :: 94 MBytes
Description :: SST, zonal, and meridional wind grids for the global band derived from COADS. Tropical Pacific indices (time series); SLP at Tahiti and Darwin, SST along ship tracks, 850mb zonal wind index, 200mb zonal wind index, outgoing longwave radiation. Year-month grids of Arctic and Antarctic ice coverage.

DS277.0 :>Global SST from Natl. Centers for Environ. Prediction (formerly NMC), by Reynolds, Stokes, and Smith

ProductType:

In situ and global blended analyses. These were the first developed SST analyses. Work on this time series has been discontinued. The OI and Reconstructed SST products superceed these products.

Geographic Coverage :

[in situ] Pacific and Atlantic Ocean, 40S-60N, 2 degree resolution

Temporal Coverage :

[in situ] 1970 - 1981, for yr-mo, COADS/ICE climatology

Dataset Size :

[in situ] yr-mo 8 MB, clim 1.3 MB

Geographic Coverage :

[blended] global, 2 degree resolution

Temporal Coverage :

[blended] 1982-1994, clim and yr-mo

Dataset Size :

[blended] clim 1.2 MB, yr-mo 1.2 MB/year

ProductType:

OI analyses

Geographic Coverage :

global, 1 degree resolution

Temporal Coverage :

Nov. 1981 - present, wkly, yr-mo, and clim.

Dataset Size :

clim 3.4 MB, yr-mo 3.4 MB/year, weekly 15.1 MB/year

ProductType:

Reconstructed SST using EOFs

Geographic Coverage :

69N-25S (other regions filled with climatology), 2 degree resolution

Temporal Coverage :

1950-1992, yr-mo

Dataset Size :

1.2 MB/year

Description :

DS277.0 is a collection of SST analyses by Dick Reynolds, Diane Stokes, and Tom Smith of the Climate Modelling Branch at the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (formerly NMC). The SST data products are derived from ship, satellite, and sea ice limits data. The OI product is considered the best product for November 1981-present. The Reconstructed (using EOF's as interpolation basis functions) SST are considered to be the best product for 1950-October 1981.




  
Comments :
The data can also be obtained directly from the authors, contact:

       Diane C. Stokes
       Climate Modelling Branch
       National Centers for Environmental Prediction
       World Weather Building, Room 807
       5200 Auth Road
       Camp Springs, MD 20746 USA

       email :  wd01dm@sgi26.wwb.noaa.gov
       phone :  (301) 763-8396
       fax   :  (301) 763-8125

       Tom Smith
       Climate Analysis Center W/NMC52
       National Meteorological Center
       World Weather Building, Room 605
       5200 Auth Road
       Camp Springs, MD 20746 USA

       email : wd52ts@sgi25.wwb.noaa.gov
       phone : (301) 763-8227

DS271.0 :>Oort and Pan Global yr-mon SST grids

Geographic Coverage :: Global, (1 x 1 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: 1880 - 1979
Dataset Size :: 393 MBytes
Description :: Global SST anomaly fields have been analyzed at GFDL for each month during 1880 through 1979, based on COADS data with original resolution 2 x 2. The anomalies are relative to the 30 year (1950-1979) climatology. The climatological normal fields for the twelve calendar months are also available. From A. H. Oort and Y. H. Pan. Available in smaller groups composed of one year per file (3.9 MBytes).

DS270.0 :>Global climatology SST grids

Geographic Coverage :: Global, (2.5 x 5.0 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: Monthly
Dataset Size :: .7 MBytes
Description :: Based on digitized global monthly mean ocean surface temperatures of Washington and Thiel, NCAR. Many sources of pre-1970's data are used.

DS274.0 :>Rasmussen's and Carpenter's Tropical Pacific yr-mo SST, SST - air temp., wind grids

Geographic Coverage :: 30S - 30N, 100E - 70W, (2 x 2 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: 1946 - 1976
Dataset Size :: 204 MBytes
Description :: Rasmussen and Carpenter of NMC synthesized 16 million observations of SST, air temperature, and wind speed and direction to determine output grids of SST, SST - air temperature, wind components, wind stress components, and (SST - air temp) x wind speed. The yr-mon grids and the climatological long-term means are 188 MBytes and 15.7 MBytes, respectively.

DS289.0 :>Global Monthly SST Climatology, by Shea et. al. 1990

Geographic Coverage :: global, 2 degree resolution
Temporal Coverage :
Dataset Size :: 1.3 MBytes
Description :: Shea, Trenberth, and Reynold(NMC/CAC) used the Reynolds SST climatology (the COADS/ICE clim.) and made improvements in the regions of the Gulf Stream and Kurishio Current, i.e. reinstated more realistic horizontal temperature gradients.

DS289.1 :>Global Ocean Surface Temperature Atlas (GOSTA) March 1990, by Bottomley et. al.; UK Met. Office and MIT

Geographic Coverage :: global, 5 and 1 degree resolution
Temporal Coverage :: longterm climatology
Dataset Size :: 68 MBytes
Description :: Data from the Meteorological Office Main Marine Data Bank (primarily derived from TDF-11 data from the US Climatological Center, Asheville), and the Consolidated Data Set assembled by the US Navy Fleet Numerical Oceanography Center were used to produce this Atlas. Not only are various SST grids available but additional grids of; min. and max. SST, bucket corrections, standard deviations of SST, decadal SST, and SST anomaly grids are given. Also longterm net heat flux, incoming solar, outgoing longwave, latent heat, and sensible heat grids are available.

DS279.0 :>Data Set Atlas for Oceanographic Modeling

Geographic Coverage :: global, (1 x 1 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: based on various data sets
Dataset Size :: 165 MBytes
Description :: Samuels and Cox, of GFDL/NOAA, collected 15 data sets essential to ocean modelers and put them in a uniform format and on a standard grid. Parameters such as wind stress, sea ice/land/ocean location, precipitation minus evaporation, ocean heat storage, mixed layer depth, etc.. were gathered from data sets of Hellerman and Rosenstein, Esbensen and Kushnir, Levitus, and others. A more complete description of these monthly and yearly averaged grids can be found in "Ocean Modeling, Nov. 1987".

DS277.2 :>GISST.1 UK Met. Office Global Ice an SST

Geographic Coverage :: global, 1x1 degree resolution
Temporal Coverage :: 1948-1993, yr-mo
Dataset Size :: 150 MB Descripiton : SST observations for ship have been analyzed by Parker to form a monthly time series. This is a proprietary dataset and special permission is required for data access.

4. Surface wind / stress

DS209.0 :>Esbensen et. al., Global wind stress and heat budget clim., 1981

Geographic Coverage :: global, (5 x 5 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: based on 1850-1974 data
Dataset Size :: 8.6 MBytes
Description :: The Climate Research Institute at Oregon State University assembled wind stress and heat budget climatology data sets in 1981. Esbensen and Kushnir derived 12 monthly and annual fields for 14 heat budget parameters (including: wind speed, SST, air temperature, cloudiness, incoming solar, longwave fluxes, latent and sensible heat) on a 4 x 5 grid. Han and Lee similarly derived the wind stress and wind curl fields on a 5 x 5 grid.

DS231.0 :>Wyrtki's Tropical Pacific yr-mon surface wind stress

Geographic Coverage :: 30S - 30N, (2 x 10 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: 1947 - 1973
Dataset Size :: 8.8 MBytes
Description :: As part of NORPAX, under the direction of Wyrtki, five million ship observations were synthesized to form monthly grids of wind components and wind stress for years 1947 through 1973. Climatologies for 1900 - 1946 and 1947 - 1973 are also available.

DS232.0 :>Hellerman and Rosenstein, Monthly Global wind stress

Geographic Coverage :: global, (2 x 2 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: based on 1870 - 1976 data
Dataset Size :: 3 MBytes
Description :: Hellerman, of GFDL, derived 12 monthly fields of wind stress components based on surface observations available prior to 1976. Methods and data sources are more completely described in "Hellerman and Rosenstein, Journal of Physical Oceanography; Normal Monthly Wind Stress Over the World Ocean with Error Estimates, Vol. 13, No. 7, 1093-1104pp, 1983.

DS232.1 :>E. Harrison's Monthly Mean Global Wind Stress

Geographic Coverage :: global, (1 x 1 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :
Dataset Size :: 19 MBytes
Description :: Ed Harrison of PMEL/NOAA generated monthly climatological mean wind stress fields from the National Climate Center TDF-11 ocean observations available in approximately 1988. The dataset is described in detail and compared with that of Hellerman in "On Climatological Montly Mean Wind Stress and Wind Stress Curl Fields over the World Ocean, J. of Climate, Vol 2, No. 1, pp 57-90, 1989". The stress was computed according to the Pond and Large algorithm.

DS230.0 :>FSU, Tropical Pacific and Indian Ocean yr-mon pseudo wind stress

Geographic Coverage :: Pacific, 30S - 30N, (2 x 2 resolution)
Geographic Coverage :: Indian, 32S - 26N, (1 x 1 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: Pacific, 1961 - 1993
Temporal Coverage :: Indian, 1977 - 1993
Dataset Size :: 20 MB
Description :: O'Brien et. al. at Florida State University creates grids of pseudo surface wind stress (without a drag coefficient) for both the tropical Pacific and Indian Oceans using various sources of observed data.

DS274.0 :>Rasmussen's and Carpenter's Tropical Pacific yr-mo SST, SST - air temp., wind grids

Geographic Coverage :: 30S - 30N, 100E - 70W, (2 x 2 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: 1946 - 1976
Dataset Size :: 204 MBytes
Description :: Rasmussen and Carpenter of NMC synthesized 16 million observations of SST, air temperature, and wind speed and direction to determine output grids of SST, SST - air temperature, wind components, wind stress components, and (SST - air temp) x wind speed. The yr-mon grids and the climatological long-term means are 188 MBytes and 15.7 MBytes, respectively.

DS200.0 :>(and DS205); Global atmospheric climatology

Geographic Coverage :: global, (5 x 5 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: based on pre-1969 data
Dataset Size :: 17 MBytes
Description :: Data from many sources, available prior to 1969, have been merged to provide atmospheric grids at multilpul levels from the sea/land surface through the stratosphere (100mb) by Taljaard, van Loon, Crutcher, and Jenne. Monthly mean and yearly average grids for numerous variables (slp, height, air temperature, dew point, geostrophic wind, etc...) are given. Northern and southern hemisphere are divided into separate data sets.

DS110.1 :>A Global Ocean Wind Stress Climatology Based on ECMWF Analysis, by Trenberth, Large, and Olsen 1989

Geographic Coverage :: global, (2.5 x 2.5 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: 1980 - 1989
Dataset Size :: 174 MB
Description :: The ECMWF operational weather analysis grids were used to derive yr-month and climatological grids of wind stress. Yr-month grids for 1980-1989 are available as climatologies based on years 1980-1986, and 1980-1989. ECMWF model analysis procedures change significantly in 1986 therefore two climatologies are available. Parameters available include, U, V, wind speed, U and V wind stress, and curl. Standard deviation grids are given for all fields. Ancillary data grids include seaice/land masking grid, annual mean sea-air difference, and annual mean relative humidity (these last two grids were used during the wind stress computation).

DS251.0 :>EPOCS, Equatorial Pacific Ocean Climate Studies datasets

Geographic Coverage :: tropical global ocean (30S-30N), 2 x 2 grids
Temporal Coverage :: yr-mo, 1950 - 1979
Dataset Size :: 94 MBytes
Description :: SST, zonal, and meridional wind grids for the global band derived from COADS. Tropical Pacific indices (time series); SLP at Tahiti and Darwin, SST along ship tracks, 850mb zonal wind index, 200mb zonal wind index, outgoing longwave radiation. Year-month grids of Arctic and Antarctic ice coverage.

DS279.0 :>Data Set Atlas for Oceanographic Modeling

Geographic Coverage :: global, (1 x 1 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: based on various data sets
Dataset Size :: 165 MBytes
Description :: Samuels and Cox, of GFDL/NOAA, collected 15 data sets essential to ocean modelers and put them in a uniform format and on a standard grid. Parameters such as wind stress, sea ice/land/ocean location, precipitation minus evaporation, ocean heat storage, mixed layer depth, etc.. were gathered from data sets of Hellerman and Rosenstein, Esbensen and Kushnir, Levitus, and others. A more complete description of these monthly and yearly averaged grids can be found in "Ocean Modeling, Nov. 1987".

DS744.0 :>ESA ERS-1 Scatterometer wind data

Geographic Coverage :: global orbit
Temporal Coverage :: Nov. 1991 - Jan. 1995
Dataset Size :: 10 MB/day
Description :: European Space Agency scatterometer data from the ERS-1 satellite is reprocessed at JPL to provide surface wind estimates on the global ocean. This is a proprietary dataset - permission from ESA is required prior to data access.

5. Air-sea heat budgets

DS209.0 :>Esbensen et. al., Global wind stress and heat budget clim., 1981

Geographic Coverage :: global, (5 x 5 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: based on 1850-1974 data
Dataset Size :: 8.6 MBytes
Description :: The Climate Research Institute at Oregon State University assembled wind stress and heat budget climatology data sets in 1981. Esbensen and Kushnir derived 12 monthly and annual fields for 14 heat budget parameters (including: wind speed, SST, air temperature, cloudiness, incoming solar, longwave fluxes, latent and sensible heat) on a 4 x 5 grid. Han and Lee similarly derived the wind stress and wind curl fields on a 5 x 5 grid.

DS209.1 :>Bryan Weare's Tropical Pacific Ocean yr-mo heat budget

Geographic Coverage :: 40S - 25N, (5 x 5 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: 1957 - 1976
Dataset Size :: 23 MBytes
Description :: Weare, of University of California - Davis, synthesized observationed data to form yr-mo and yearly average grids of 28 heat budget parameters. Variables include; air temperature, salinity, SST, wind components, surface stress components, incoming and outgoing radiation, sensible and latent heat, etc...

DS209.2 :>The Bunker Climate Atlas of the North Atlantic Ocean

Geographic Coverage :: equator - 80N, (1 x 1 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: based on ????-1976 data, by Bunker
Dataset Size :: 25 MBytes
Description :: Isemer and Hasse, of Institut fur Meereskunde, took the digital records that Bunker used to produce monthly maps of ocean surface climatology and created a uniformly gridded data set. The complete data set contains 29 different variables many with standard deviation, minimum, and maximum statistics. Variables include: air temperature, dewpoint temperature, SST, sea level pressure, wind components, precipitation frequency, short and longwave radiation, latent and sensible heat flux, and wind stress components, etc ...

DS209.3 :>Heat budget atlas for the tropical Atlantic, by Hastenrath

Geographic Coverage :: 30N-30S, (1 x 1 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: 12 monthly fields
Dataset Size :: 4.6 MBytes
Description :: Hastenrath and Lamb, 1978 produced the Heat budget atlas of the tropical Atlantic and Eastern Pacific Ocean; University of Wisconsin Press, 103pp. Within this data set are the grids for the tropical Atlantic and the variables; all wave, net short wave, net long wave, sensible heat flux, net oceanic heat gain (residual).

DS289.1 :>Global Ocean Surface Temperature Atlas (GOSTA) March 1990, by Bottomley et. al.; UK Met. Office and MIT

Geographic Coverage :: global, 5 and 1 degree resolution
Temporal Coverage :: longterm climatology
Dataset Size :: 68 MBytes
Description :: Data from the Meteorological Office Main Marine Data Bank (primarily derived from TDF-11 data from the US Climatological Center, Asheville), and the Consolidated Data Set assembled by the US Navy Fleet Numerical Oceanography Center were used to produce this Atlas. Not only are various SST grids available but additional grids of; min. and max. SST, bucket corrections, standard deviations of SST, decadal SST, and SST anomaly grids are given. Also longterm net heat flux, incoming solar, outgoing longwave, latent heat, and sensible heat grids are available.

DS541.0 :>An atlas based on COADS, by Josef Oberhuber

Geographic Coverage :: gridded global oceans, 2x2
Temporal Coverage :: monthly climatology
Dataset Size :: 75 MBytes
Description :: Josef Oberhuber, of the Max Planck Institut fur Meteorologie, has prepared an atlas data set from COADS 1950-1979. This gridded monthly climatological data set was first described in Max-Planck Tech Reports 14 and 15, 1988. The grids available include: air temp., cloud cover, slp, rain, surface salinity, sst, wind, bouyancy, latent heat, lw radiation, sw radiation, sensible heat, net heat, etc... The rainfall data was taken from a Shea dataset and the surface salinity from Levitus.

DS541.1 :>Surface Marine Atlas derived from COADS by Da Silva and Young

ProductType:

Climatologies

Geographic Coverage :

global, 1x1 and .5x.5 degree resolutions

Temporal Coverage :

monthly clim.

Dataset Size :

39 MB (1.18 MB/file), and 405 MB (12.4 MB/file)

ProductType:

Anomalies

Geographic Coverage :

global, 1x1 resolution

Temporal Coverage :

yr-mo, 1945-1989

Dataset Size :

1915 MB, 46.7 MB per file

Description :

Arlindo Da Silva and Christine Young (NASA/UWM) used the 1945-1989 COADS CMR observations to derived complete heat flux quantities. All observed quantities and heat flux parameters are given in two separate climatologies and yr-mo anomaly time series.




Comments :
 Objective
  Analysis:  Sucessive correction method with Barnes' weight
             function

     Main
 Features:  All calculations from individual observations
            Wind speed correction (revised Beaufort equivalent scale)
            Stability dependent transfer coefficients (Large&Pond)
            Heat and fresh water fluxes fine tuned with oceanic
            constraints (simple linear inverse calculation).

6. Ocean Depth and Land Elevation

DS750.1 :>Scripps/RAND Corp. global land elevation / ocean depth

Geographic Coverage :: global, (1 x 1 resolution)
Dataset Size :: .5 MBytes
Description :: The RAND Corp. derived a data set, with some corrections, from a data set compiled by Gates and Nelson at Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

DS759.1 :>ETOPO5 (Earth Topography 5') world elevation / ocean depth

Geographic Coverage :: global, (5' x 5')
Dataset Size :: 57 MBytes
Description :: Peter Sloss from the National Geophysical Data Center merged many sources of data in 1986 to create and earth surface topography data set.

DS754.0 :>754, Global 10' x 10' elevation dataset from the Navy

Geographic Coverage :: global, (10' x 10')
Dataset Size :: 56 MBytes
Description :: This is a general terrain dataset, defining many land surface characteristics. The values assigned at each grid point include; elevation (modal, minimum, maximum), % water, % urban development, terrain characteristics (flat, desert, marsh, mountains, etc..), and general direction of ridges, etc..

7. Moored and Drifting Buoys

DS255.0 :>EPOCS drifting buoy position and SST

Geographic Coverage :: Tropical Pacific
Temporal Coverage :: 6-hrly, 1979-1984, various length time series
Dataset Size :: 9 MBytes
Description :: 83 drifting buoy time series were objectively interpolated to yield 6-hrly locations and SST. The optimal method provides an estimate of error associated with each time series. These error estimate are given with the data. Data originated from Hansen at AOML/NOAA.

DS256.0 :>Surface Buoy Data from MEDS of Canada

Geographic Coverage :: global
Temporal Coverage :: 1980-1993
Dataset Size :: 1300 MBytes
Description :: The Marine Environmental Data Service of Canada has done quality control checks on a decade of buoy data - mostly free drifting buoys. Along with buoy position and time of observation most records have SST. Some buoys also have SLP, U and V components of the wind, and air temperature. Beginning in 1990 some subsurface temperature data is also present.

DS256.1 :>PMEL/TOGA-TOA Atlas moored buoys, EPOCS moored buoys, low lying tropical island met. stations.

Geographic Coverage :: tropical Pacific Ocean
Temporal Coverage :: 1980-1991
Dataset Size :: 42 MBytes
Description :: The PMEL/TOGA-TOA Atlas buoys time series were derived at PMEL. In general these files are daily averages at 14 different location, 1984-1991. Variables (at various locations and time periods) include: air temperature, wind components, SST, and sub-surface ocean temperatures. The EPOCS moored buoys and low lying island data were accumulated by Mike McPhaden at PMEL. The data were collected at 15 equatorial Pacific Ocean locations (10 buoys and 5 island stations) for the period 1980-1991. There are daily averages of air temperature, wind components, and SST.

8. Sea Ice

DS270.2 :>Monthly Average SST and Ice-Pack Limits

Geographic Coverage :: global, (1 x 1 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: based on various 1970's and pre-70's data
Dataset Size :: 1.7 MBytes
Description :: Alexander and Mobley, of the RAND Corp., assembled monthly SST fields based on data obtained from NCAR and Fleet Numerical Weather Central during the early 70's. The sea-ice limits were derived from monthly distributions of the main ice pack of the Arctic and Antarctic from the Fleet Weather Facility ice charts and Navy Atlases. The primarily value of this data set is the sea-ice limits.

DS256.2 :>Arctic Surface Pressure and Temperature from Ice buoys

Geographic Coverage :: Arctic Ocean, (10 x 2 degree, resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: 1979-1990, 2 x daily
Dataset Size :: 251 MBytes
Description :: Colony from the Polar Science Center at the University of Washington has used pressure and temperature data collected from buoys on the Arctic ice and a few surrounding land stations to create this gridded data set. The temperature grids (used mainly for calibration of the pressure sensor) end in 1986.

DS233.0 :>Arctic Monthly Ice Concentration

Geographic Coverage :

Arctic Ocean, (80 x 58 polar grid)

Temporal Coverage :

1900-1990, yr-mon

Dataset Size :

11 MB

Description :

Walsh and Chapman from the University of Illinois contructed time series of Arctic Ocean Sea Ice concentration based on many historical data sources.




Comments :
   THE INCORPORATION OF ICE STATION DATA INTO A STUDY OF RECENT
   ARCTIC TEMPERATURE FLUCTUATIONS, JOHN E. WALSH, MWR, DEC77

   RECENT VARIATIONS OF SEA ICE AND AIR TEMPERATURE IN HIGH
   LATITUDES, WILLIAM CHAPMAN AND JOHN WALSH, BULL. AMS, VOL. 74,
   NO. 1, JANUARY 1993

DS234.0 :>Antarctic Monthly Ice Area

Geographic Coverage :: Antarctic, 1x36 resolution
Temporal Coverage :: 1973-1990, yr-mon
Dataset Size :: 1 MB
Description :: Ropelewski from Climate Analysis Center at NMC developed a times series of ice area coverage around the Antarctic continent in 10 degree longitude bands.

9. Data Derived from Satellite Sensors

DS727.1 :>GEOSAT Gridded Data Track File, JPL-Oceans-8902 version of the Geosat Altimetry data

Geographic Coverage :: global orbit, approx. 7km
Temporal Coverage :: Nov. 1986 - Dec. 1988
Dataset Size :: 520 MBytes
Description :: The Geosat altimetry oceans Geophysical Data Records have been edited and condensed by Fu and Zlotnicki of JPL. Standard methods of corrupt record deletion, regridding alongtracks, applying corrections, and data reformatting have yielded a data set ready for "doing science". The steps used to obtain this 26 month time series of ssh (sea surface height) with tides, ssh without tide, significant wave height, and sigma naught are well documented.

DS726.0 :>SEASAT scatterometer derived wind speed and direction

Geographic Coverage :: global orbit, approx. 50km
Temporal Coverage :: 1978, 90 days
Dataset Size :: 200 MBytes
Description :: Scatterometer data from SEASAT were objectively dealiased by Robert Atlas, at Goddard Space Flight Center, to determine wind speed and direction during the short 90 day operation period.

DS726.1 :>SEASAT scatterometer derived wind stress

Geographic Coverage :: global, 2.5 x 2.5
Temporal Coverage :: 1978, 90 days
Dataset Size :: .5 MBytes
Description :: Scatterometer data from SEASAT were objectively dealiased by Robert Atlas, at Goddard Space Flight Center, to determine wind speed and direction during the short 90 day operation period. Chelton et. al., Oregon State University, derived U and V vector component wind stress using the Large and Pond drag coefficient formulation. Three monthly global grids (July, August, September) and the full period grid are available.

10. Sub-surface Ocean Grids

DS277.1 :>NMC ODAS Subsurface Temperature and Velocity Output

Geographic Coverage :

Tropical Pacific, 35S - 45 N, 1x1.5 grid : 27 depth levels

Temporal Coverage :

1991 - March 1994, weekly

Dataset Size :

4 MBytes/week

Description :

The Pacific Ocean analysis is from an ocean-data assimilation system (ODAS) developed at the Coupled Model Project/NMC. The ODAS inserts ocean-temperature observations into a GCM of the tropical Pacific Ocean in order to approximate three-dimensional fields of ocean temperature. Because ocean currents are driven on density variations which are largely a result of temperature variations the currents are also approximated by the ODAS. Data used in the ODAS includes XBT observations, and SST from satellites, ships, and buoys. The ODAS has remained unchanged since Jan 1991.




Comments :
Leetmaa, A. and M. Ji, 1989: Operational hindcasting of the tropical
Pacific.  Dyn. Atmos. Oceans, 13, 465-490.

Derber, J. and A. Rosati, 1989: A Global Oceanic Data Assimilation
System.  J. Phys. Oceanogr., 19, 1333-1347.

DS285.0 :>Levitus' World Ocean Atlas, 1994

Geographic Coverage :

global analyzed 1 x 1 grids and observed profiles

Temporal Coverage :

based on data approx. 1900 - 1992

Dataset Size :

928 MB analyzed, 2278 MB observed

Description :

The World Ocean Atlas 1994 was developed at the Ocean Climate Laboratory (OCL) at NODC under the direction of Sydney Levitus. It includes both analyzed and observed data products as described below.




Comments :
     1) All the observed level profile data:                  2278 MBytes
     2) All profile data interpolated to 33 standard levels:   962 MBytes
     3) 1x1 degree analyzed data :

        PARAMETER                       ANNUAL*    SEASON**     MONTH***

        Temperature                          X          X           X 
        Salinity                             X          X           X 
        Dissolved oxygen                     X          X
        Apparent Oxygen Utilization          X          X
        Oxygen saturation                    X          X 
        Phosphate                            X 
        Nitrate                              X         
        Silicate                             X

        *ANNUAL - composite of all data regardless of season or year
                  : 33 levels   :17 MB per file
       **SEASON - data composite based on seasons following the Northern 
                  Hemisphere convention.  The seasons are defined as:
                  Winter (January - March)
                  Spring (April - June)
                  Summer (July - September)
                  Fall (October - December)
                  : 33 levels, 17 MB per file
      *** MONTH - data composite for each month.  January through December
                  analysis for 19 depth levels only (0-1000 m)
                  : 10 MB per file

      4) 5x5 degree analyzed data at 33 levels: .7 MB per file,
             means, standard deviation, and number of observations are
             available in separate files.
 
            Parameter     Annual  Season
            ---------     ------  ------
               T,             x       x   
               S,             x       x  
               OX,            x       x  
               AOU,           x       x  
               OX. SAT.,      x       x 
               NO3,           x         
               PHO4,          x         
               SIO3,          x         

  CONKRIGHT, M.E., S. LEVITUS AND T.P. BOYER.  1994.
  WORLD OCEAN ATLAS 1994 VOLUME 1: NUTRIENTS.  NOAA ATLAS 
  NESDIS 1.  150 PP.
  
  LEVITUS S. AND T.P. BOYER.  1994A. WORLD OCEAN ATLAS 1994
  VOLUME 2: OXYGEN. NOAA ATLAS NESDIS 2.  186 PP.

  LEVITUS S., R. BURGETT AND T.P. BOYER.  1994B. WORLD OCEAN
  ATLAS 1994 VOLUME 3:SALINITY. NOAA ATLAS NESDIS 3.  99 PP.
 
  LEVITUS S. AND T.P. BOYER.  1994C. WORLD OCEAN ATLAS 1994
  VOLUME 4 TEMPERATURE.  NOAA ATLAS NESDIS 4.  117 PP.

DS260.0 :>Scripps ocean temperature climatology, temperature anomalies, and heat storage grids derived from XBT data.

Geographic Coverage :: 5x2 degree between 60N and 60S, 11 standard levels from 0 to 400 M
Temporal Coverage :: 1950-1993, yr-mo
Dataset Size :: 120 MBytes
Description :: White and Walker used the Scripps XBT archive to derived standard depth level ocean temperature grids. The 12 month climatology was derived from data taken during 1980-1989, while the anomaly grids, which are yr-mo, were derived for 1950-1993. Where OI was unrealistic the grids values are assigned missing values. The heat storage anomaly (0-400m) is also given in a yr-mo time series.

DS254.0 :>Global Ocean Nutrients

Geographic Coverage :: global, (1 x 1 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: based on data 1900 - 1978
Dataset Size :: 45 MBytes
Description :: Using the J.Reid Selected Ocean Stations (DS245.0) Ray Najjar constructed annual nutrient grids that match the Levitus Ocean Atlas. Grids for PO4, NO3, and SIO2 are available at 33 depth levels.

DS285.1 :>Southern Ocean Atlas Data; observation and gridded fields

Geographic Coverage :: 80S - 30S, (1 x 2 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: based on data 1900 - 1975
Dataset Size :: 25 MBytes
Description :: Gordon (Columbia University), Molinelli (Science Applications Inc.), and Baker (Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory) assembled the high-quality station data from the Southern Ocean found in the NODC archive. These individual stations (over 6000) are available (11 MBytes). The data were also interpolated to a uniform grid at 47 levels (14 MBytes). The variables include; temperature, salinity, sigma-t, silicate, oxygen, phosphate, and nitrate. Further information and contour maps are given in "Southern Ocean Atlas, published by the Columbia University Press".

DS278.0 :>Bauer's and Robinson's global ocean monthly and annual climatology

Geographic Coverage :: global, (1 x 1 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: based on data 1900 - 1981
Dataset Size :: 70 MBytes
Description :: Bauer and Robinson, of Compass Systems Inc., assembled various data sets to define global temperature monthly climatology in the upper 150 meters (at 5 levels) of the ocean. Temperature and salinity annual climatology, to the full ocean depth, is also given for the NH and equatorial regions.

DS286.0 :>The Hydrography of the North Atlantic Ocean in the Early 1980's, an Atlas.

Geographic Coverage :: 10S-80N, 100W-10W (1 x 1 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: based on data from 1981-1985
Dataset Size :: 18 MBytes
Description :: Fukumori, Martel, and Wunsch used high quality data from early 80's to create a seven level data atlas for the N. Atlantic. A multi-spatial scale objective analysis scheme was used to determine the gridded data. The parameters include dynamic height relative to 3000db, temperature, potential temperature, salinity, phosphate, silicate, and oxygen

DS279.0 :>Data Set Atlas for Oceanographic Modeling

Geographic Coverage :: global, (1 x 1 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: based on various data sets
Dataset Size :: 165 MBytes
Description :: Samuels and Cox, of GFDL/NOAA, collected 15 data sets essential to ocean modelers and put them in a uniform format and on a standard grid. Parameters such as wind stress, sea ice/land/ocean location, precipitation minus evaporation, ocean heat storage, mixed layer depth, etc.. were gathered from data sets of Hellerman and Rosenstein, Esbensen and Kushnir, Levitus, and others. A more complete description of these monthly and yearly averaged grids can be found in "Ocean Modeling, Nov. 1987".

DS287.0 :>GFDL MOM Climatolgical Datasets

Geographic Coverage :: global, (73 x 73, and 1 x 1 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :
Dataset Size :: 544 MBytes
Description :: The standard set of atmosphere and ocean climatologies required by the GFDL MOM model. These datasets are duplicates of many in the NCAR archive, but are formatted and saved so as to interface with the model as described in the model documentation. The data includes, Levitus ocean temperature and salinity, Scripps ocean depth, Hellerman wind stress, and Oorts air temperature climatology.

DS544.0 :>Tritium and 3He from TTO-NAS and NATS 1981

Geographic Coverage :: North Atlantic
Temporal Coverage :: 1981
Dataset Size :: .3 MBytes
Description :: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Helium Isotope Lab data release # 3.0. Transient tracer data collect in the North Atlantic during 1981 on seven oceanographic cruise data was made publically avialable in 1989 by Jenkins. A large portion of the data is described in Scripps Institution of Oceanography report; SIO No. 86-15. 3225 tritium and 2895 helium measurements at 252 stations comprise this observed dataset.

11. Datasets from Operational Atmospheric Analyses

DS082.1 :>National Meteorological Center (NMC) twice daily and yr-mon global grids

Geographic Coverage :

global, (2.5 x 2.5 resolution)

Temporal Coverage :

1976 - present

Dataset Size :

approx. 2.72 GB (.5 MB/day) for 2x daily, and appox. 90 MB for yr-mo

Description :

A "near" surface subset has been extracted from the full NMC twice daily analysis archive. The definition of "near" has changed as the NMC model has changed through time (see comments below). Numbers of parameters available have also changed with the evolution of the model.




Comments :
  - beginning 00Z 1 July 1976, 1000mb (height, temperature, wind
    components, relative humidity) and surface temperature
  - beginning 00Z 8 December 1977, sea level pressure 
  - beginning 00Z 21 September 1978, surface pressure
  - beginning 12Z 16 May 1979, sea surface temperature (12Z only until
    22 April 1986, then 00Z only through the present)
  - beginning 6 June 1980 model changes allow boundary layer estimates 
    of wind components, relative humidity and potential temperature  --
    notes this boundary layer was 50mb thick with the parameter values
    applying to the mid-point - approx. 200 meters elevation.
  - beginning April 1985 the model boundary layer became 10mb thick
    making the wind components, etc, valid at approx. 40 meters
    elevation

DS084.5 :>NMC Medium Range Forecast (MRF) Model Flux Archive

Geographic Coverage :: global, (243 x 122 before March 1991) (385 x 190 after March 1991)
Temporal Coverage :: March 1990 - present date
Dataset Size :: approx. 14.8 GB (122 MB/week)
Description :: The ending temporal coverage date lags the current date by about 1 month. The fields included are precipitation, radiation, clouds, air-sea fluxes, winds temperatures, etc... 30 data fields are saved at each archining period. There are archives 4 x daily from the analysis cycle and 2 x daily from the forecast cycle.

DS240.0 :>(and DS240.1, DS240.5, DS240.6, DS242.0, DS018.1) U.S. Navy Fleet Numerical Oceanography Center twice daily grids

Geographic Coverage :: global, hemispheric, (various resolutions)
Temporal Coverage :: 1961 - 1993
Dataset Size :: various
Description :: Six data sets comprise the Navy set, with many have overlapping characteristics. These grids are not uniformly spaced in latitude or longitude. The grid is 63 x 63 points evenly spaced on a polar stereo- graphic projection (that is 381 km at 60 degrees latitude).

DS110.0 :>(and DS307) European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) Twice daily and yr-mo grids

Geographic Coverage :: global, (2.5 x 2.5 resolution) (1.875 x 1.875 resolution during FGGE)
Temporal Coverage :: 1980 - 1989
Dataset Size :: various
Description :: DS110 The ECMWF global analysis data set contains five parameter (geopotential height, temperature, horizontal wind components, vertical wind component, and relative humidity) at seven pressure levels (1000, 850, 700, 500, 300, 200, and 100 millibars). The 0Z and 12Z grids have been merged resulting in a 3160 MB dataset. The "near" surface (1000mb) grids have been extracted and are available (150 MB). The yr-mo grids, at all levels, have also been computed and are available (149 MB).
Description :: DS307 The FGGE (Dec. 1978 - Nov. 1979) global analysis data set is much like that above. The differences are higher resolution and nine additional pressure levels between 300mb and 10mb that do not have relative humidity grids.

DS111.0 :>(and DS111.1, DS111.2, DS111.3) ECMWF/TOGA Advanced Operational Dataset.

Geographic Coverage :

global, (2.5 x 2.5, 1.125 x 1.125 resolution)

Temporal Coverage :

1985 - present

Dataset Size :

various

Description :

In support of TOGA ECMWF has made available 4 products all with global coverage. Data availability lags the current date by 2-3 months. The upper air analysis (DS111.0 and DS111.2) are at 14 (or 15) levels. All grids are uninitialized analysis.




Comments : 
  - DS111.1, Surface and Diagnostic Fields Dataset, 4 x daily, 1.125
    degree resolution, including many variables (psfc, tsfc, soil moisture, 
    total cloud, u10, v10, surface geopotential and roughness, albedo, etc
     ...), 18.5 GB, 230 MB/month.

  - DS111.2, Basic 2.5x2.5 degree Analysis Dataset, 2 x daily, upper air
    and surface variables (psfc, tsfc, msl, u10, v10, etc...), 10.7 GB, 120
    MB/month.  This data is comparable to DS110 in horizontal resolution.
    Beginning in January 1992 the 925mb level was added.

  - DS111.3, Supplementary Fields Dataset, 2 x daily, 1.125 degree resolution,
    variables include;  heat fluxes, radiations, U, and V wind stresses
    3.9 GB, 50 MB/month. Beginning Jan 1990 the grids are  4x daily.

  - DS111.0, Upper Air Dataset, 4 x daily, 14 levels, 290 MB/month. Beginning
    in January 1992 the 925mb level was added.

DS108.0 :>Australian National Meteorological Research Centre Twice daily and yr-mo grids

Geographic Coverage :: southern hemisphere, (47 x 47 grid points on a polar stereographic projection - 508 km at 60 degrees latitude)
Temporal Coverage :: 1972 - 1992
Dataset Size :: various
Description :: 47 x 47 polar grids at nine levels: surface (sea level pressure), 1000 850 700 500 mb (height, temperature, horizontal wind components, and mixing ratio), 300 250 200 100 (height, temperature, horizontal wind components). The full data set - twice daily and 37 grids per analysis time are available (2100 MB). Yr-mo grids are available, and are approx. 50 MB.

12. Miscellaneous

DS484.0 :>Pacific Rainfall

Dataset Geographic Coverage
Geographic Coverage :: Topical Pacific Ocean 125E-130W
Temporal Coverage :: 1971-1993
Dataset Size :: 5 MBytes
Description :: Morrissey and Shafer of the Oklahoma Climatological Survey collated a set of 200 observed station time series that report rain fall. The records are of various length and were contributed by the U.S., New Zealand, and th French Polynesian Met. Service.

DS552.0 :>UNESCO: Flow Rates of Selected World Rivers

Geographic Coverage :: global
Temporal Coverage :: approx. 1800 - 1972
Dataset Size :: 2.1 MBytes
Description :: UNESCO publications have been digitized to provide river flow histories. The number and distribution of the recorded rivers vary with time. European and Asian rivers have the longest records. This data set has North American rivers beginning in 1965. African and South American river records begin approx. 1910. Records include monthly average, annual average, and minimum and maximum single day rates.

DS250.0 :>Pacific hourly, daily, and monthly sea level heights

Geographic Coverage :: pacific ocean perimeter and island locations
Temporal Coverage :: 1901 - 1985, 1974 - 1987
Dataset Size :: 1.4 MBytes, 49.3 MBytes
Description :: various sea level records

DS252.0 :>PSMSL Permanent Service Mean Sea Level station data, from NOAA NOS

Geographic Coverage :: global
Temporal Coverage :: beginning - 1987, continuing, various lengths
Dataset Size :: 24 MBytes
Description :: Monthly and annual mean values of sea level from 1336 stations distributed globally. Times series vary in length, the earliest begin in the late 1800's and latest are still being recorded (these records are current through 1987. Both unadjusted and adjusted data are included.

DS280.0 :>Global long-term mean ocean surface currents

Geographic Coverage :: global, (5 x 5 resolution)
Temporal Coverage :: monthly, based on data 1901 - 1978
Dataset Size :: .2 MBytes
Description :: Meehl, of NCAR, digitized pilot charts from the U.S. Naval Oceanographic Office for four discrete months (Jan., Apr., Jul., and Oct.,). A complete data description and analysis is given in "Characteristics of Surface Current Flow Inferred from a Global Ocean Current Data Set, Journal of Physical Oceanography, Vol. 12, 538-555pp, 1982, by Gerald Meehl".

DS257.0 :>Canadian West and East Coast water temperature and salinity from the Marine Environmental Data Service (MEDS)

Geographic Coverage :: Canada
Temporal Coverage :: 1914-1985
Dataset Size :: 10 MBytes
Description :: The daily West coast records have variable length at 34 locations. The earliest records are during 1914 (Departure Bay) and latest are during 1985. The shortest time series is 2 years and longest is 70 years. The variables include seawater temperature and salinity. The daily East coast records were recorded at 3 locations and span the period 1926-1980. These data files have twice daily SST, wind force and direction, and cloud cover.

DS258.0 :>Scripps pier and west coast seawater temperature and salinity

Geographic Coverage :: 29 times series from 14 locations
Temporal Coverage :: daily, 1916-1990
Dataset Size :: 3.2 MBytes
Description :: Approximately, 14 time series of seawater temperature and salinty from various locations along the west coast of the U.S. The longest records come from the Scripps pier.

DS236.0 :>Legates' and Willmott's Global air temperature and precipitation

Geographic Coverage :: global, .5x.5 resolution
Temporal Coverage :: monthly, long term mean
Dataset Size :: 84 MB
Description :: Legates and Willmott derived a global precipitation data set in 1990. The analysis of the data is described in: Legates and Willmott, 1990, International Journal of Climatology, Vol. 111-127.

DS253.0 :>Surface water and atmospheric CO2 and N20 observations

Geographic Coverage :: Reseach cruise track data
Temporal Coverage :: 1977-1990
Dataset Size :: 2.1 MB
Description :: Research ocean cruises by Scripps (R. Weiss) collected and analysesed, use gas chromatography, air and water samples for concentrations of C02 and NO2.

DS259.0 :>Improved Meteorological (IMET) ocean surface measurements

Geographic Coverage :
Temporal Coverage :: 1992
Dataset Size :: 4 MB
Description :: Weller, Prada, and Walden from WHOI have initiated a program to collect high resolution ocean surface data using ship and buoy mounted instrumentation. Wind speed and direction, relative humidity, air temperature, SST, precipitation, and radiations are among the sampled variables.

DS474.0 :>Manned Russian ice station observed data

Geographic Coverage :: Arctic Ocean
Temporal Coverage :: 6-hrly, 1950-1990
Dataset Size :: 10 MB
Description :: Colony, (Polar Science Center, U. of WA), arranged with the Russian Arctic and Antarctic Research Institude to receive records from 30 manned ice located meteorological observing stations. These stations have an average time series length of 2.5 years.

13. Data Requests and Further Information

U.S. Mail

Steven Worley 
NCAR
P.O. Box 3000
Boulder, CO 80307

electronic mail

Internet         (worley@ncar.ucar.edu)
TELEMAIL/OMNET   (To: r.jenne, subject: message for Steve )
FAX              (303-497-1137)

telephone

303-497-1248  Steven Worley
303-497-1215  (Roy Jenne, Manager, Data Support Section)

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