Fisheries Oceanography in Coastal Alabama (FOCAL): Vertical Hydrographic Profiles along a Transect from Mobile Bay to Northern Gulf of Mexico 2007-2012

Dataset extent

The Fisheries Oceanography in Coastal Alabama (FOCAL) program began in 2006 as a way for scientists at Dauphin Island Sea Lab (DISL) to study the natural variability of Alabama's nearshore environment as it relates to fisheries production. FOCAL provided a long-term baseline data set that included time-series hydrographic data from a permanent offshore mooring (vertical array of thermisters, CTDs at surface and bottom, and an ADCP at bottom) and shipboard surveys (vertical CTD profiles and water sampling), as well as monthly ichthyoplankton and zooplankton (depth-discrete) sample collections.

The subset of data presented here are for vertical CTD profile data collected from 2007-2012 along a 75 km transect starting from the Middle Bay Lighthouse in Mobile Bay and extending out to the 35 m isobath on the shelf in the northern Gulf of Mexico. The upstream six stations are within Mobile Bay and, except stations MB and two more just outside of Mobile Bay, are located in the 12-14 m deep ship channel or deeper water. The transect had between 15 and 17 stations from 2007-2012.

At each station, a SeaBird Sealogger CTD (SBE 25) was cast for vertical profile data including temperature, conductivity (salinity, density), specific conductance, pressure (depth), oxygen and oxygen saturation, fluorescence (chlorophyll, CDOM), PAR, pH, and beam attenuation and transmission. CTD profiles were done at approximately 1-3 month intervals from March 2007 to July 2012, with more frequent sampling in June-July 2010 (after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill).

Data and Resources

Additional Info

Field Value
Author Kyeong Park
Maintainer data@disl.org
Last Updated July 23, 2022, 03:05 (UTC)
Created July 23, 2022, 03:05 (UTC)
Access_Constraints Permission to access these data must be given by Dr. Kyeong Park of the Dauphin Island Sea Lab.
ISO 19115 Topic Categories oceans, inlandWaters
Place Keywords Alabama, Mobile Bay, Dauphin Island Sea Lab, DISL, Gulf of Mexico
Theme Keywords CTD, vertical profile, hydrographic data, temperature, salinity, density, conductivity, specific conductance, dissolved oxygen, oxygen saturation, PAR, pressure, pH, chlorophyll, CDOM, fluorescence, beam attenuation, beam transmission, water quality
Use_Constraints Acknowledgment of the Dauphin Island Sea Lab (DISL), Fisheries Oceanography in Coastal Alabama (FOCAL) program, and the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources - Marine Resources Division is required in products developed from these data, and such acknowledgment as is standard for citation and legal practices for data source is expected by users of these data. Users should be aware that comparison with other data sets for the same area from other time periods may be inaccurate due to inconsistencies resulting from changes in mapping conventions, data collection, and computer processes over time. The distributor shall not be liable for improper or incorrect use of these data, based on the description of appropriate/inappropriate uses described in the metadata document. These data are not legal documents and are not to be used as such.
dc.coverage.placeName Alabama Mobile Bay Dauphin Island Sea Lab DISL Gulf of Mexico
dc.coverage.t.max 20120711T
dc.coverage.t.min 20070306T
dc.coverage.x.max -88.0113
dc.coverage.x.min -88.2116
dc.coverage.y.max 30.4374
dc.coverage.y.min 29.7989
dc.creator DISL: Park Lab
dc.date Unpublished material
dc.description The Fisheries Oceanography in Coastal Alabama (FOCAL) program began in 2006 as a way for scientists at Dauphin Island Sea Lab (DISL) to study the natural variability of Alabama's nearshore environment as it relates to fisheries production. FOCAL provided a long-term baseline data set that included time-series hydrographic data from a permanent offshore mooring (vertical array of thermisters, CTDs at surface and bottom, and an ADCP at bottom) and shipboard surveys (vertical CTD profiles and water sampling), as well as monthly ichthyoplankton and zooplankton (depth-discrete) sample collections. The subset of data presented here are for vertical CTD profile data collected from 2007-2012 along a 75 km transect starting from the Middle Bay Lighthouse in Mobile Bay and extending out to the 35 m isobath on the shelf in the northern Gulf of Mexico. The upstream six stations are within Mobile Bay and, except stations MB and two more just outside of Mobile Bay, are located in the 12-14 m deep ship channel or deeper water. The transect had between 15 and 17 stations from 2007-2012. At each station, a SeaBird Sealogger CTD (SBE 25) was cast for vertical profile data including temperature, conductivity (salinity, density), specific conductance, pressure (depth), oxygen and oxygen saturation, fluorescence (chlorophyll, CDOM), PAR, pH, and beam attenuation and transmission. CTD profiles were done at approximately 1-3 month intervals from March 2007 to July 2012, with more frequent sampling in June-July 2010 (after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill).
dc.language en
dc.subject oceans inlandWaters
dc.title Fisheries Oceanography in Coastal Alabama (FOCAL): Vertical Hydrographic Profiles along a Transect from Mobile Bay to Northern Gulf of Mexico 2007-2012
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