N: 12.106 S: 8.861 E: -116.57 W: -129.129
Description
The SPURS (Salinity Processes in the Upper Ocean Regional Study) project is a NASA-funded oceanographic process study and associated field program that aim to elucidate key mechanisms responsible for near-surface salinity variations in the oceans. The project is comprised of two field campaigns and a series of cruises in regions of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans exhibiting salinity extremes. SPURS employs a suite of state-of-the-art in-situ sampling technologies that, combined with remotely sensed salinity fields from the Aquarius/SAC-D, SMAP and SMOS satellites, provide a detailed characterization of salinity structure over a continuum of spatio-temporal scales. The SPURS-2 campaign involved two month-long cruises by the R/V Revelle in August 2016 and October 2017 combined with complementary sampling on a more continuous basis over this period by the schooner Lady Amber. Focused around a central mooring located near 10N,125W, the objective of SPURS-2 was to study the dynamics of the rainfall-dominated surface ocean at the western edge of the eastern Pacific fresh pool subject to high seasonal variability and strong zonal flows associated with the North Equatorial Current and Countercurrent. Part of the Argo global network of autonomous, self-reporting samplers, Argo floats drift horizontally and move vertically through the water column generally on 10 day cycles, collecting high-quality temperature, conductivity and salinity depth (CTD) profiles from the upper 2000m. Four of the Twenty five floats deployed during SPURS-2 within the campaign spatial domain and time period were additionally equipped with acoustic rain gauges (PAL - Passive Acoustic Listeners). SPURS-2 ARGO-PAL data files are in netCDF/CF-compliant data format and organized per float. Float identifiers associated with ARGO CTD data are referenced in the metadata of the related PAL files.
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Variables
Variables are a set of physical properties whose values determine the characteristics or behavior of something. For example, temperature and pressure are variables of the atmosphere. Parameters and variables can be used interchangeably. Variable level attributes provide individual information for each variable.
The Name in this table is the variable name. Fill value indicates missing or undefined data points in a variable. Valid range is the range of values the variable can store. Scale factor is used to increase or decrease the size of an object and can be used to correct for distortion. For questions on a specific variable, please use the Earthdata Forum.
| Name Sort descending | Description | Units | Data Type | Fill Value | Valid Range | Scale Factor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| latitude | PAL latitude | degrees_north | double | N/A | -90 to 90 | 1 |
| longitude | PAL longitude | degrees_east | double | N/A | -180 to 180 | 1 |
| rainacc | Rainfall accumulation of PALS sensors | mm | double | N/A | 0.571583 to 7467.804909 | 1 |
| rainrate | Rainfall rate of PALS sensors | mm/hr | double | N/A | 0.307218 to 174.057965 | 1 |
| rain_latitude | Interpolated latitude for every rain sample using GPS fixes between two profiles | degrees_north | double | N/A | 10.241884 to 12.106962 | 1 |
| rain_longitude | Interpolated longitude for every rain sample using GPS fixes between two profiles | degrees_east | double | N/A | -125.248575 to -116.570011 | 1 |
| rain_rate | The fillvalue of -9999 are missing data because these are times when the PAL was not listening during float descent, ascent, and when telemetering data at the ocean surface. This occurs for a few hours at a time about every 9.5 days. | mm/hr | double | -9999 | 0 to 300 | 1 |
| rain_time | Time of PALS rain sensors | days since 1950-01-01T00:00:00 | double | N/A | N/A | 1 |
| sampling_interval | Sample interval for calculating rain accumulation | minutes | double | N/A | 2 to 9 | 1 |
| time | original irregular 2-9 min samplings are resampled to regular 1-min intervals | seconds since 1950-01-01T00:00:00Z | double | N/A | N/A | 1 |
| wind_latitude | Interpolated latitude for every wind only sample using GPS fixes between two profiles | degrees_north | double | N/A | 10.23865 to 12.112536 | 1 |
| wind_longitude | Interpolated longitude for every wind only sample using GPS fixes between two profiles | degrees_east | double | N/A | -125.248703 to -116.561135 | 1 |
| wind_speed | No wind data are recorded during rainy periods, so are marked with fillvalue -9999. Additionally, the fillvalue of -9999 is also used to denote missing data when the PAL was not listening during float descent, ascent, and when telemetering data at the ocean surface. This occurs for a few hours at a time about every 9.5 days. | m/s | float | -9999 | 0 to 30 | 1 |
| wind_time | Time of PALS wind sensors | days since 1950-01-01T00:00:00 | double | N/A | N/A | 1 |