This dataset comprises 104 hydrographic data profiles, collected by a conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) sensor package, during April - May 1990 from the North East Atlantic Ocean. A complete list of all data parameters are described by the SeaDataNet Parameter Discovery Vocabulary (PDV) keywords assigned in this metadata record. The data were collected by the Queen's University Belfast School of Biological Sciences as part of the Biogeochemical Ocean Flux Study (BOFS).

This dataset comprises 53 hydrographic data profiles, collected by a conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) sensor package, during May - June 1989 from two sites in the North East Atlantic Ocean, centred on 47 N, 20 W and 59 N, 22 W. A complete list of all data parameters are described by the SeaDataNet Parameter Discovery Vocabulary (PDV) keywords assigned in this metadata record. The data were collected by the Institute of Oceanographic Sciences Deacon Laboratory as part of the Biogeochemical Ocean Flux Study (BOFS).

This dataset comprises 45 hydrographic data profiles, collected by a conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) sensor package, during June - July 1991 from stations in the South Iceland Basin in the North East Atlantic Ocean. A complete list of all data parameters are described by the SeaDataNet Parameter Discovery Vocabulary (PDV) keywords assigned in this metadata record. The data were collected by the University of Southampton Department of Oceanography as part of the Biogeochemical Ocean Flux Study (BOFS).

This dataset comprises 167 hydrographic data profiles, collected by a conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) sensor package, during August - October 1994 from stations from the Straits of Hormuz to the Murray Ridge in the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea. A complete list of all data parameters are described by the SeaDataNet Parameter Discovery Vocabulary (PDV) keywords assigned in this metadata record. The data were collected by the Plymouth Marine Laboratory as part of the ARABESQUE project.

This dataset comprises 171 hydrographic data profiles, collected by a conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) sensor package, during August-September 1995 from stations on the Malin shelf break, at approximately 56.5 N, 9.0 W. A complete list of all data parameters are described by the SeaDataNet Parameter Discovery Vocabulary (PDV) keywords assigned in this metadata record. The data were collected by the Dunstaffnage Marine Laboratory as part of the Land Ocean Interaction Study (LOIS) Shelf Edge Study (SES).

This dataset comprises 156 hydrographic data profiles, collected by a conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) sensor package, during April - May 1996 from stations in an area centred around 56.3N, 9.0 W in the North East Atlantic. A complete list of all data parameters are described by the SeaDataNet Parameter Discovery Vocabulary (PDV) keywords assigned in this metadata record. The data were collected by the Napier University School of Life Sciences as part of the Land Ocean Interaction Study (LOIS) Shelf Edge Study (SES).

This dataset comprises 137 hydrographic data profiles, collected by a conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) sensor package, in May 1995 from the Hebrides shelf edge and slope east of the Hebrides terrace seamount, in the north east Atlantic. A complete list of all data parameters are described by the SeaDataNet Parameter Discovery Vocabulary (PDV) keywords assigned in this metadata record. The data were collected by the University of Wales, Bangor School of Ocean Sciences as part of the Land Ocean Interaction Study (LOIS) Shelf Edge Study (SES).

This dataset comprises 87 hydrographic data profiles, collected by a conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) sensor package, in July 1996 from stations along the Hebridean Shelf and shelf edge west of Scotland, centred around 56 30 N, 9W in the North East Atlantic. A complete list of all data parameters are described by the SeaDataNet Parameter Discovery Vocabulary (PDV) keywords assigned in this metadata record. The data were collected by the University of Wales, Bangor School of Ocean Sciences as part of the Land Ocean Interaction Study (LOIS) Shelf Edge Study (SES).

The dataset contains physical, biological and chemical oceanographic measurements, and meteorological data. Hydrographic measurements include temperature, salinity, attenuance and backscatter, pH and dissolved oxygen concentrations, while water samples were analysed for concentrations of carbon, nitrogen, hydrocarbons, nutrients and pigments. Samples were also collected for phytoplankton and zooplankton analyses, while results from production experiments are also included in the data set. These oceanographic data are supplemented by surface meteorological measurements. Measurements were taken at sites in the Bellinghausen Sea as part of a 2-ship Eulerian experiment between the 28th of October and the 17th of December 1992. The data were collected via (i) underway sampling (SeaSoar Undulating Oceanographic Recorder (UOR), lightfish, hull-mounted acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP), meteorology and surface ocean parameters) of which there are 121179 records and (ii) discrete sampling (conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) and expendable bathythermograph (XBT) casts, bottle stations, net hauls, productivity incubations) of which there are over 1000 deployments and experiments. The study aimed to measure the magnitude and variability of carbon and nitrogen fluxes during early summer in the Southern Ocean, with particular emphasis on rates and processes in the marginal ice zone. The data were collected and supplied by UK participants in the Joint Global Ocean Flux Study (JGOFS). The British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) are responsible for calibrating, processing, quality controlling and documenting the data and assembling the final data set. Underway data are stored as 1 minute interval time series for each cruise with all parameters merged on date/time. The data are fully quality controlled; checks were made for instrument malfunction, fouling, constancy, spikes, spurious values, calibration errors, baseline and salt-water corrections. The discrete data are stored in a relational database (Oracle RDBMS), chiefly as vertical profiles and are uniquely identified by a combination of deployment number and depth.

The data set comprises hydrographic, biogeochemical and biological data, including measurements of temperature, salinity and attenuance, plus concentrations of parameters such as nutrients, pigments, urea, hydrocarbons, sedimentation flux, sulphur and dissolved carbon. Analyses of bacterial, zooplankton and phytoplankton communities were also undertaken. The oceanographic data were supplemented by measurements of surface meteorological parameters. Data were collected across three repeated sections: one along the Gulf of Oman; a section at 67deg East from 8 to 14.5deg North; and a major section from 8deg North, 67 deg East to the coast of Oman. Other one-off sections were also traversed in the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman areas. Measurements were collected during two cruises: one between 27 August and the 4 October 1994 and the other between the 16 November and the 19 December 1994. Sections were covered by underway surface ocean measurements (one minute sampling of multiple parameters providing some 5 million measurements) complemented by a total of 21 CTD/water-bottle stations, 14 of which were repeated. ARABESQUE was organised by the Plymouth Marine Laboratory of NERC's Centre for Coastal and Marine Sciences and involved the University of Wales, Bangor; Queen's University of Belfast; University of East Anglia; University of Edinburgh; University of Newcastle; the Bedford Institute of Oceanography, Canada; the Max Planck Institute for Limnology, Germany and the Sultan Qaboos University, Oman. Data management support for the project was provided by the British Oceanographic Data Centre. All data collected as part of the project were lodged with BODC who had responsibility for assembling, calibrating, quality controlling and fully documenting the data. BODC checked for instrument spikes or malfunction, values beyond the calibration range, unreasonable ratios of chemical constituents and unreasonable deviations from climatological means. Data were assembled into a relational database, complete with supporting documentation and a user manual. The full data set has been published by BODC on CD-ROM complete with user interface.