The marine fieldwork took place in the Indian Ocean, the cruise track ran from the Seychelles to Oman.; The freshwater studies centred at Priest Pot, a one hectare 3.5 m deep, eutrophic pond in the English Lake District.

Bacteria taxonomy-related biomass expressed as carbon per unit volume of the water column; Chlorophyll pigment concentrations in water bodies; Dissolved organic carbon uptake and production in the water column; Dissolved oxygen parameters in the water column; Raw fluorometer output; Particulate total and organic nitrogen concentrations in the water column; Nitrate concentration parameters in the water column; Nitrite concentration parameters in the water column; Other meteorological measurements; Phosphate concentration parameters in the water column; Primary production in the water column; Salinity of the water column; Molecular biology parameters; Temperature of the water column; Concentration of suspended particulate material in the water column; Bacterial production in the water column; Zooplankton taxonomy-related abundance per unit volume of the water column; Zooplankton taxonomy-related biomass expressed as carbon per unit volume of the water column; Zooplankton non taxonomy-related biomass expressed as carbon per unit volume of the water column; Zooplankton non taxonomy-related abundance per unit volume of the water column; Phytoplankton generic abundance in water bodies; Metadata parameters; Ammonium and ammonia concentration parameters in water bodies; Regenerated production in water bodies; Silicate concentration parameters in the water column; Bacteria taxonomic abundance in water bodies; Sound velocity and travel time in the water column; Alkalinity, acidity and pH of the water column; Visible waveband radiance and irradiance measurements in the atmosphere; Phytoplankton generic biomass in water bodies; Phytoplankton taxonomic abundance in water bodies; Transmittance and attenuance of the water column; New production in water bodies; Density of the water column; Microzooplankton taxonomy-related biomass expressed as carbon per unit volume of the water column; Microzooplankton taxonomic abundance in water bodies; Carotenoid and flavenoid pigment concentrations in water bodies; Phytoplankton taxonomic biomass in water bodies

Anemometers; fluorometers; radiometers; CTD undulators; thermosalinographs; discrete water samplers; atmospheric radiometers; salinity sensor; CTD; transmissometers; water temperature sensor; shipboard incubators; meteorological packages

The programme involved two major fieldwork activities: a deep ocean research cruise and a programme of freshwater studies. The marine component of the dataset generated a total of 430 distinct variables, quantifying the meteorology, hydrography, chemistry, biogeochemistry, and the microbial plankton (bacteria, phytoplankton and microzooplankton) biomass, taxonomic composition along the 5500 km cruise track in the Indian Ocean during August-September 2001. Measurements were mainly made on water samples collected either from the sea surface while the ship was underway or from a range of depths during conductivity-temperatue-depth (CTD) and water sampling stations at each of 11 sites occupied in the Indian Ocean. The maximum depth sampled at open ocean sites ranged from 300 to 3000 m. Short sections of 300 m deep CTD and fluorescence profiles were also obtained using a moving vessel profiler (MVP). The freshwater component of the dataset generated variables from Priest Pot in the Lake District and from a range of other freshwater sites around the UK. It contains underpinning weekly time-series measurements characterising the physical, chemical and biological condition of the water column at the Priest Pot sampling site between 2002-2004, together with data from studies focused on the seasonal and spatial dynamics of viruses, bacteria and picophytoplankton, trace metal distribution and the ubiquity of microbial protists. The database also contains 376 gene sequences from genetic material extracted from environmental samples. The programme was a 5-year Thematic Programme funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and the purpose of the study was to improve understanding of aquatic microbial biodiversity, with the emphasis on community interactions, ecosystem function (e.g. biogeochemical cycling of carbon and nutrients, and the potential for biotechnological exploitation. The programme involved scientists from the Plymouth Marine Laboratory, the National Oceanography Centre Southampton, University of Cardiff School of Biosciences, University of Cardiff School of Earth and Ocean Sciences, University of Warwick School of Biological Sciences, University of Newcastle School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, University of Bristol School of Biological Sciences, University of Oxford Department of Zoology, University of Liverpool School of Biological Sciences, University of Stirling School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, the Marine Biological Association of the UK, Lancaster University Department of Environmental Science and the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH) Lancaster and Dorset.

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