Metadata Report for BODC Series Reference Number 1687197
Metadata Summary
Problem Reports
Data Access Policy
Narrative Documents
Project Information
Data Activity or Cruise Information
Fixed Station Information
BODC Quality Flags
SeaDataNet Quality Flags
Metadata Summary
Data Description |
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Data Identifiers |
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Time Co-ordinates(UT) |
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Spatial Co-ordinates | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Parameters |
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Problem Reports
No Problem Report Found in the Database
Data Access Policy
Open Data supplied by Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)
You must always use the following attribution statement to acknowledge the source of the information: "Contains data supplied by Natural Environment Research Council."
Narrative Documents
Non-toxic (underway) sea water supply
A source of uncontaminated near-surface (commonly 3 to 7 m) seawater pumped continuously to shipboard laboratories on research vessels. There is typically a temperature sensor near the intake (known as the hull temperature) to provide measurements that are as close as possible to the ambient water temperature. The flow from the supply is typically directed through continuously logged sensors such as a thermosalinograph and a fluorometer. Water samples are often collected from the non-toxic supply. The system is also referred to as the underway supply.
AMT3 Chlorophyll-a from underway surface samples
Originator's Protocol for Data Acquisition and Analysis
These data originates from analyses on underway samples collected from the ship's non-toxic supply. The samples were filtered through GF/F filters, immediately extracted for 12-18 h in 90% acetone and chlorophyll fluorescence measured with a Turner Designs 10-AU fluorometer using the method of Welschmeyer.
The fluorometer was calibrated with Sigma chlorophyll a standard.
Instrumentation Description
Turner Designs 10-AU fluorometer
References cited
Welschmeyer, Nicholas A., 1994. Fluorometric analysis of chlorophyll a in the presence of chlorophyll b and pheopigments, Limnology Oceanography, 39 (8), 1985-1992
BODC Data Processing Procedures
Data were submitted to BODC in Microsoft Excel spreadsheet format and archived with reference PML000109. The samples were provided with Julian Day, date, time (GMT), Latitude and Longitude as metadata.
Parameter codes defined in BODC parameter dictionary were assigned to the correct Chla data. Data was loaded into BODC's database using established BODC data banking procedures. Minor typos were present on the originator's metadata, these were cross-checked with the information given on the cruise report and were banked accordingly.
No unit conversion was necessary as originator's units were consistent with the ones used in the BODC parameter dictionary.
A parameter mapping table is provided below;
Originator's Parameter | Units | Description | BODC Parameter Code | Units | Comments |
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correct Chla | µg l-1 | Concentration of chlorophyll-a {chl-a} per unit volume of the water body [particulate >GF/F phase] by filtration, acetone extraction and fluorometry | CPHLFLP1 | mg m-3 | - |
Data Quality Report
BODC were not advised of any data quality issues by the data originator.
Problem Report
Not relevant to this data set.
Project Information
The Atlantic Meridional Transect (AMT) - Phase 1 (1995-2000)
Who was involved in the project?
The Atlantic Meridional Transect (AMT) programme was designed by and implemented as a collaboration between Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML) and Southampton Oceanography Centre (SOC). The programme was hosted by Plymouth Marine Laboratory and involved additional researchers from UK and international universities throughout its duration.
What was the project about?
When AMT began in 1995 the programme provided a platform for international scientific collaboration, including the calibration and validation of SeaWiFs measurements and products. The programme provided an exceptional opportunity for nationally and internationally driven collaborative research and provided a platform for excellent multi-disciplinary oceanographic research. As an in situ observation system, the data collected by the AMT consortium informed on changes in biodiversity and function of the Atlantic ecosystem during this period of rapid change to our climate and biosphere.
The scientific aims were to assess:
- mesoscale to basin scale phytoplankton processes
- the functional interpretation of bio-optical signatures
- the seasonal, regional and latitudinal variations in mesozooplankton dynamics
When was the project active?
The first phase of the AMT programme ran from 1995 to 2000 and consisted of a total of 12 cruises. A second phase of funding allowed the project to continue for the period 2002 to 2006 with a further 6 cruises.
Brief summary of the project fieldwork/data
The AMT programme undertook biological, chemical and physical oceanographic research during the annual return passage of the RRS James Clark Ross between the UK and the Falkland Islands or the RRS Discovery between the UK and Cape Town, a distance of up to 13,500 km. This transect crossed a range of ecosystems from sub-polar to tropical and from euphotic shelf seas and upwelling systems to oligotrophic mid-ocean gyres. The transect route was covered north-south in September/October and south-north in April/May of each year.
The measurements of hydrographic and bio-optical properties, plankton community structure and primary production completed on the first 12 transects (1995-2000) represent the most coherent set of repeated biogeochemical observations over ocean basin scales. This unique dataset has led to several important discoveries concerning the identification of oceanic provinces, validation of ocean colour algorithms, distributions of picoplankton, identifying new regional sinks of pCO2 and variability in rates of primary production and respiration.
Who funded the project?
The programme was funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and further support was received from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) with equipment and funding from the Sea-viewing Wild Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS) project.
Data Activity or Cruise Information
Cruise
Cruise Name | JR19960916 (AMT3, JR15) |
Departure Date | 1996-09-16 |
Arrival Date | 1996-10-25 |
Principal Scientist(s) | Tony Bale (Plymouth Marine Laboratory) |
Ship | RRS James Clark Ross |
Complete Cruise Metadata Report is available here
Fixed Station Information
No Fixed Station Information held for the Series
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 |
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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 |
SeaDataNet Quality Control Flags
The following single character qualifying flags may be associated with one or more individual parameters with a data cycle:
Flag | Description |
---|---|
0 | no quality control |
1 | good value |
2 | probably good value |
3 | probably bad value |
4 | bad value |
5 | changed value |
6 | value below detection |
7 | value in excess |
8 | interpolated value |
9 | missing value |
A | value phenomenon uncertain |
B | nominal value |
Q | value below limit of quantification |