Metadata Report for BODC Series Reference Number 1112430
Metadata Summary
Problem Reports
Data Access Policy
Narrative Documents
Project Information
Data Activity or Cruise Information
Fixed Station Information
BODC Quality Flags
Metadata Summary
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Problem Reports
No Problem Report Found in the Database
Data Access Policy
Public domain data
These data have no specific confidentiality restrictions for users. However, users must acknowledge data sources as it is not ethical to publish data without proper attribution. Any publication or other output resulting from usage of the data should include an acknowledgment.
The recommended acknowledgment is
"This study uses data from the data source/organisation/programme, provided by the British Oceanographic Data Centre and funded by the funding body."
Narrative Documents
Sea-Bird SBE 37-SM MicroCAT
The SBE 37-SM MicroCAT is a high accuracy conductivity and temperature recorder (pressure optional). Designed for moorings and other long-duration, fixed-site deployments, MicroCATs have non-corroding titanium housings rated for operation to 7000 metres or pressure sensor full scale-range. Communication with the MicroCAT is over an internal, 3-wire, RS-232C link. The MicroCAT's aged and pressure-protected thermistor has a long history of exceptional accuracy and stability (typical drift is less than 0.002° per year). Electrical isolation of the conductivity electronics eliminates any possibility of ground-loop noise.
Specifications
| Temperature (°C) | Conductivity (S m-1) | Optional Pressure | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Measurement Range | -5 to +35 | 0 to 7 (0 to 70 mS cm-1) | 0 to full scale range: 20 / 100 / 350 / 1000 / 2000 / 3500 / 7000 metres |
| Initial accuracy | 0.002 | 0.0003 | 0.1% of full scale range |
| Typical Stability | 0.0002 | 0.0003 | 0.05% of full scale range |
| Resolution | 0.0001 | 0.00001 | 0.002% of full scale range |
| Sensor Calibration | +1 to +32 | 0 to 6; physical calibration over range 2.6 to 6 S m-1, plus zero conductivity (air) | Ambient pressure to full scale range in 5 steps |
| Memory | 8 Mbyte non-volatile FLASH memory | ||
| Data Storage | Converted temperature and conductivity: 6 bytes per sample (3 bytes each) Time: 4 bytes per sample Pressure (optional): 5 bytes per sample | ||
| Real-Time Clock | 32,768 Hz TCXO accurate to ±1 minutes year-1 | ||
| Standard Internal Batteries | Nominal 10.6 Ampere-hour pack consisting of 12 AA lithium batteries. Provides sufficient capacity for more than 630,000 samples for a typical sampling scheme | ||
| Housing | Titanium pressure case rated at 7000 metres | ||
| Weight (without pressure) | In water: 2.3 kg In air: 3.8 kg | ||
Further information can be found via the following link: SBE 37-SM MicroCAT Datasheet
Processing of JC025 MicroCAT data
Originator's processing
No data processing has been carried out by the data originator. The data are automatically calibrated from internally stored calibration coefficients when the data are downloaded from the instrument. At this point salinity was derived from temperature, conductivity and pressure using Seasoft V1.59.
BODC processing
The MicroCat data were supplied to BODC by the data originator in ASCII format. Following standard BODC procedure, the data were reformatted into BODC internal format using transfer function 482. This table shows how the variables present in the MicroCAT data were mapped to appropriate BODC parameter codes.
| Originator's variable | Units | Description | BODC parameter code | Units |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Temperature | °C | Temperature of the water body | TEMPPR01 | °C |
| Conductivity | S m-1 | Electrical conductivity of the water body by in-situ conductivity cell | CNDCPR01 | S m-1 |
| Pressure | dbar | Pressure (measured variable) exerted by the water body by semi-fixed in-situ pressure sensor and corrected to read zero at sea level | PREXPR01 | dbar |
| Salinity | PSU | Practical salinity of the water body by conductivity cell and computation using UNESCO 1983 algorithm | PSALPR01 | Dimensionless |
The reformatted data were visualised using the in-house EDSERPLO software. Suspect data were marked by adding an appropriate quality control flag, missing data by both setting the data to an appropriate value and setting the quality control flag. Data cycles recorded when the instrument was not settled at its final depth have been flagged. This mainly occurred before or during deployment or during and after recovery.
Project Information
Oceans 2025 - The NERC Marine Centres' Strategic Research Programme 2007-2012
Who funds the programme?
The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) funds the Oceans 2025 programme, which was originally planned in the context of NERC's 2002-2007 strategy and later realigned to NERC's subsequent strategy (Next Generation Science for Planet Earth; NERC 2007).
Who is involved in the programme?
The Oceans 2025 programme was designed by and is to be implemented through seven leading UK marine centres. The marine centres work together in coordination and are also supported by cooperation and input from government bodies, universities and other partners. The seven marine centres are:
- National Oceanography Centre, Southampton (NOCS)
- Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML)
- Marine Biological Association (MBA)
- Sir Alister Hardy Foundation for Marine Science (SAHFOS)
- Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory (POL)
- Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS)
- Sea Mammal Research Unit (SMRU)
Oceans2025 provides funding to three national marine facilities, which provide services to the wider UK marine community, in addition to the Oceans 2025 community. These facilities are:
- British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC), hosted at POL
- Permanent Service for Mean Sea Level (PSMSL), hosted at POL
- Culture Collection of Algae and Protozoa (CCAP), hosted at SAMS
The NERC-run Strategic Ocean Funding Initiative (SOFI) provides additional support to the programme by funding additional research projects and studentships that closely complement the Oceans 2025 programme, primarily through universities.
What is the programme about?
Oceans 2025 sets out to address some key challenges that face the UK as a result of a changing marine environment. The research funded through the programme sets out to increase understanding of the size, nature and impacts of these changes, with the aim to:
- improve knowledge of how the seas behave, not just now but in the future;
- help assess what that might mean for the Earth system and for society;
- assist in developing sustainable solutions for the management of marine resources for future generations;
- enhance the research capabilities and facilities available for UK marine science.
In order to address these aims there are nine science themes supported by the Oceans 2025 programme:
- Climate, circulation and sea level (Theme 1)
- Marine biogeochemical cycles (Theme 2)
- Shelf and coastal processes (Theme 3)
- Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning (Theme 4)
- Continental margins and deep ocean (Theme 5)
- Sustainable marine resources (Theme 6)
- Technology development (Theme 8)
- Next generation ocean prediction (Theme 9)
- Integration of sustained observations in the marine environment (Theme 10)
In the original programme proposal there was a theme on health and human impacts (Theme 7). The elements of this Theme have subsequently been included in Themes 3 and 9.
When is the programme active?
The programme started in April 2007 with funding for 5 years.
Brief summary of the programme fieldwork/data
Programme fieldwork and data collection are to be achieved through:
- physical, biological and chemical parameters sampling throughout the North and South Atlantic during collaborative research cruises aboard NERC's research vessels RRS Discovery, RRS James Cook and RRS James Clark Ross;
- the Continuous Plankton Recorder being deployed by SAHFOS in the North Atlantic and North Pacific on 'ships of opportunity';
- physical parameters measured and relayed in near real-time by fixed moorings and ARGO floats;
- coastal and shelf sea observatory data (Liverpool Bay Coastal Observatory (LBCO) and Western Channel Observatory (WCO)) using the RV Prince Madog and RV Quest.
The data is to be fed into models for validation and future projections. Greater detail can be found in the Theme documents.
Oceans 2025 Theme 3: Shelf and Coastal Processes
Over the next 20 years, UK local marine environments are predicted to experience ever-increasing rates of change - including increased temperature and seawater acidity, changing freshwater run-off, changes in sea level, and a likely increase in flooding events - causing great concern for those charged with their management and protection. The future quality, health and sustainability of UK marine waters require improved appreciation of the complex interactions that occur not only within the coastal and shelf environment, but also between the environment and human actions. This knowledge must primarily be provided by whole-system operational numerical models, able to provide reliable predictions of short and long-term system responses to change.
However, such tools are only viable if scientists understand the underlying processes they are attempting to model and can interpret the resulting data. Many fundamental processes in shelf edge, shelf, coastal and estuarine systems, particularly across key interfaces in the environment, are not fully understood.
Theme 3 addresses the following broad questions:
- How do biological, physical and chemical processes interact within shelf, coastal and estuarine systems, particularly at key environmental interfaces (e.g. coastline, sediment-water interface, thermocline, fronts and the shelf edge)?
- What are the consequences of these interactions on the functioning of the whole coastal system, including its sensitivity and/or resilience to change?
- Ultimately, what changes should be expected to be seen in the UK coastal environment over the next 50 years and beyond and how might these changes be transmitted into the open ocean?
Within Oceans 2025, Theme 3 will develop the necessary understanding of interacting processes to enable the consequences of environmental and anthropogenic change on UK shelf seas, coasts and estuaries to be predicted. Theme 3 will also provide knowledge that can improve the forecasting capability of models being used for the operational management of human activities in the coastal marine environment. Theme 3 is therefore directly relevant to all three of NERC's current strategic priorities; Earth's Life-Support Systems, Climate Change, and Sustainable Economies
The official Oceans 2025 documentation for this Theme is available from the following link: Oceans 2025 Theme 3
Weblink: http://www.oceans2025.org/
Oceans 2025 Theme 3, Work Package 3.2: Horizontal Patchiness in Vertical Mixing in Stratified Shelf Seas
In this Work Package, the Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory (POL) aim to address vertical mixing processes at the thermocline that are either poorly understood or have inadequate parameterisations in models. This is important because, as a boundary to vertical mixing, the thermocline affects much of the ecology and biochemistry of seasonally-stratifying shelf seas. Horizontal patchiness of vertical mixing is now known to be driven by varying seabed topography, indicating a need for a non-hydrostatic approach. This work is an expansion of the research carried out by POL during project Physical-Biological Control of New Production within the Seasonal Thermocline.
The specific objectives of Work Package 3.2 are:
- Quantify discrepancies between the Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory Coastal Ocean Modelling System (POLCOMS) numerical model and observations of thermocline depths/strengths and diapycnal fluxes.
- Determine the causes of these discrepancies in terms of modelled and observed responses to meteorological forcing and in terms of the potential for patchy internal mixing.
- Quantify the importance of non-hydrostatic processes at the thermocline over typical shelf topographies.
- Carry out ship-based process studies focusing on the patchiness of mixing through the shelf thermocline.
- Quantify the consequences of thermocline patchiness over a whole shelf sea, alongside recommendations for process, bathymetry, and model resolution required to simulate the more important consequences.
More detailed information on this Work Package is available at pages 7 - 8 of the official Oceans 2025 Theme 3 document: Oceans 2025 Theme 3
Weblink: http://www.oceans2025.org/
Cruise Schedule
| Ship | Sampling Region | Cruise | Dates | Main measurements |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RRS James Cook | Celtic Sea and shelf edge | JC025 | 2008-07-02 to 2008-07-27 | Turbulence profiles, biochemistry sampling, dye release studies, scanfish surveys (CTD and fluorescence), seabed grabs, core sampling, seabird and mammal observations, fisheries echosounder studies, CTD profiles, temperature-fluorometer chain tows, zooplankton net hauls, baited underwater camera studies, cetacean acoustics, mooring deployments |
Moorings
| Station ID | Latitude | Longitude | Water depth(m) | Mooring description | Deployed on | Recovered on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MS1 | 49° 51.21' | -7° 56.94' | 78 | Temperature chain, surface and bottom CTD | 15:45 UTC 2008-07-05 | 18:48 UTC 2008-07-24 |
| MS1 | 49° 51.21' | -7° 56.82' | 78 | Lander-mounted sea-bed ADCP | 13:39 UTC 2008-07-05 | 17:50 UTC 2008-07-24 |
| MS2 | 49° 53.90' | -7° 52.57' | 114 | Temperature chain, surface and bottom CTD | 02:23 UTC 2008-07-05 | 13:25 UTC 2008-07-23 |
| MS2 | 49° 53.85' | -7° 52.48' | 114 | Lander-mounted sea-bed ADCP | 03:07 UTC 2008-07-05 | 15:40 UTC 2008-07-24 |
| MS3 | 49° 56.40' | -7° 49.00' | 122 | Temperature chain, surface and bottom CTD | 21:47 UTC 2008-07-04 | 11:40 UTC 2008-07-23 |
| MS3 | 49° 56.30' | -7° 48.90' | 122 | Lander-mounted sea-bed ADCP | 22:28 UTC 2008-07-04 | 12:24 UTC 2008-07-22 |
| MS4 | 49° 44.99' | -7° 40.05' | 110 | Sea-bed ADCP | 18:29 UTC 2008-07-05 | 07:59 UTC 2008-07-23 |
Data Activity or Cruise Information
Data Activity
| Start Date (yyyy-mm-dd) | 2008-07-04 |
| End Date (yyyy-mm-dd) | 2008-07-23 |
| Organization Undertaking Activity | Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory (now National Oceanography Centre, Liverpool) |
| Country of Organization | United Kingdom |
| Originator's Data Activity Identifier | MS3_Mooring |
| Platform Category | moored surface buoy |
JC025 mooring at site MS3 from 04 to 23 July 2008
A mooring was deployed at site MS3 from RV James Cook during cruise JC025 in the Celtic Sea. The mooring consisted of an upper and lower chain which were fitted with CTD and temperature sensors. The deployment was recovered using aft cranes and the deck winch.
| Deployed (UTC): | 2008-07-04 21:47 |
|---|---|
| Water depth: | 122 m |
| Latitude (+ve N): | 49.940° |
| Longitude (+ve E): | -7.817° |
| Acoustic release S/N: | 118 |
| Recovered (UTC): | 2008-07-23 11:40 |
The mooring was deployed in two sections: a top line in surface waters and a bottom line in deeper waters. The two lines were tethered where they overlapped and both had glass spheres at the top of the line for buoyancy.
Temperature chain configuration - top wire
| Depth (m) | Instrument Type | Serial number | Comments | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top | MicroCAT SBE37-SM V 2.6a | 3250, 8834 (pressure sensor) | The conductivity and temperature sensors were calibrated on 2005-06-26. The pressure sensor was calibrated on 2005-06-21 | - |
| 0 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 1061* | - | |
| 5 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 1062 | - | |
| 10 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 1063 | - | |
| 12 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 1064 | - | |
| 14 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 1069 | - | |
| 16 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 1070 | - | |
| 18 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 1078 | - | |
| 20 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 1079 | - | |
| 22 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 1080 | - | |
| 24 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 1081 | - | |
| 26 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 1082 | - | |
| 28 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 1083 | - | |
| 30 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 1084 | - | |
| 32 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 1085 | - | |
| 34 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 1086 | - | |
| 36 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 1087 | - | |
| 38 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 6175 | - | |
| 40 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 6176 | - | |
| 42 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 6177 | - | |
| 44 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 6178 | - | |
| 46 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 7334 | - | |
| 50 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 8517 | - | |
| 55 | Vemco Minilog12-T | 5591 | - | |
| 60 | Star Oddi DST centi-TD | 3653 | - |
* Originator reports that this instrument was either lost or not deployed.
Temperature chain configuration - bottom wire
| Distance from sphere on bottom line (height above MicroCAT (m)) | Instrument Type | Serial number | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 (60) | Star Oddi DST centi-TD | 3654 | - |
| 10 (50) | Vemco Minilog12-T | 5592 | - |
| 20 (40) | Vemco Minilog12-T | 5593 | - |
| 30 (30) | Vemco Minilog8-TR | 5594 | 8-bit memory resulting in lower resolution data than 12-bit Vemco loggers |
| 40 (20) | Vemco Minilog8-TR | 3021 | 8-bit memory resulting in lower resolution data than 12-bit Vemco loggers |
| 50 (10) | Vemco Minilog8-TR | 3022 | 8-bit memory resulting in lower resolution data than 12-bit Vemco loggers |
| 60 (0) | MicroCAT SBE37-SM | 4607, 9676 (pressure sensor) | The conductivity and temperature sensors were calibrated on 2006-02-19. The pressure sensor was calibrated on 2006-02-13 |
For more information please see the cruise report for JC025
Other Series linked to this Data Activity - 1114608 1114356 1114393 1114473 1114368 1114461 1114528 1114504 1114577 1114633 1114645 1114381 1114448 1114541 1114565 1114621 1114657 1114400 1114412 1114485 1114497 1114516 1114553 1114424 1114436 1114589 1114590
Cruise
| Cruise Name | JC025 |
| Departure Date | 2008-07-02 |
| Arrival Date | 2008-07-27 |
| Principal Scientist(s) | Jonathan Sharples (Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory) |
| Ship | RRS James Cook |
Complete Cruise Metadata Report is available here
Fixed Station Information
Fixed Station Information
| Station Name | Oceans 2025 WP3.2: Fixed Station MS3 |
| Category | Offshore location |
| Latitude | 49° 56.33' N |
| Longitude | 7° 48.83' W |
| Water depth below MSL | 122.0 m |
Oceans 2025 WP3.2: Fixed Station MS3
Station MS3 is located at 49° 56.33'N, 7° 48.83'W in the Celtic Sea and has a water depth of 122 m. This station was visited as part of the fieldwork carried out for Oceans 2025 Theme 3, Work Package 3.2: Horizontal Patchiness in Vertical Mixing in Stratified Shelf Seas. Activities were carried out at site MS3 during cruise JC025 from 04 July 2008 to 23 July 2008. The exact position is visible below.
Position of Fixed Stations sampled during JC025
Sampling History for MS3
| Date | Activities | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| 2008-07-04 | Deployed mooring line of Vemco and Star-Oddi temperature loggers throughout water column with surface and bed Sea-Bird MicroCAT CTDs. Deployed ADCP s/n 10628 attached to sea-bed lander frame CTD profiles Cetacean acoustics using C-POD porpoise detectors attached to lander frame (s/n 49) and lander mooring line (s/n 78) | Lander recovered on 2008-07-22 Mooring line recovered on 2008-07-23. C-POD detector s/n 50 recorded data from 17:02 UTC 2008-07-04 until 13:49 UTC 2008-07-22. C-POD detector s/n 78 recorded data from 10:46 UTC 2008-07-15 to 10:46 UTC 2008-07-16 and from 22:49 UTC 2008-07-16 to 18:57 UTC 2008-07-17. |
| 2008-07-15 to 2008-07-16 | Baited underwater camera deployment | 893 images recorded |
| 2008-07-16 | One CTD profile. | Benthic grab and core sampling |
| 2008-07-17 | CTD profiles with rosette bottle samples taken for nutrients, primary production, chlorophyll, nitrogen uptake and phytoplankton concentration Baited underwater camera deployment | 771 images recorded. |
Other Series linked to this Fixed Station for this cruise - 1103149 1103371 1103383 1103395 1103402 1114356 1114368 1114381 1114393 1114400 1114412 1114424 1114436 1114448 1114461 1114473 1114485 1114497 1114504 1114516 1114528 1114541 1114553 1114565 1114577 1114589 1114590 1114608 1114621 1114633 1114645 1114657
Other Cruises linked to this Fixed Station (with the number of series) - JC025 (32)
BODC Quality Control Flags
The following single character qualifying flags may be associated with one or more individual parameters with a data cycle:
| Flag | Description |
|---|---|
| Blank | Unqualified |
| < | Below detection limit |
| > | In excess of quoted value |
| A | Taxonomic flag for affinis (aff.) |
| B | Beginning of CTD Down/Up Cast |
| C | Taxonomic flag for confer (cf.) |
| D | Thermometric depth |
| E | End of CTD Down/Up Cast |
| G | Non-taxonomic biological characteristic uncertainty |
| H | Extrapolated value |
| I | Taxonomic flag for single species (sp.) |
| K | Improbable value - unknown quality control source |
| L | Improbable value - originator's quality control |
| M | Improbable value - BODC quality control |
| N | Null value |
| O | Improbable value - user quality control |
| P | Trace/calm |
| Q | Indeterminate |
| R | Replacement value |
| S | Estimated value |
| T | Interpolated value |
| U | Uncalibrated |
| W | Control value |
| X | Excessive difference |
