Dissolved oxygen:argon gas ratio measured from the surface seawater flowthrough of USCGC Healy, October 2011

• Main Author: Juranek, Lauren
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: NSF Arctic Data Center 2017
• Subjects: oxygen; gas saturation; community metabolism; Chukchi; Beaufort; Bering; Arctic; Arctic Ocean; Pacific; Beaufort Sea; Ocean acidification; Ocean acidification in the western Arctic Ocean; Pacific Arctic
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.18739/a2jd4pq0g; https://arcticdata.io/catalog/view/doi:10.18739/A2JD4PQ0G

The purpose of this project was to assess ocean acidification in the western Arctic Ocean, using ship time that is currently scheduled for annual mooring turnarounds in the Beaufort Sea. On these cruises, in October of 2011-2013, the investigators collected samples for measurement of carbonate system parameters, inorganic nutrients, dissolved oxygen, oxygen isotopes, and oxygen/argon ratios, as well as continuous underway measurements of dissolved oxygen, oxygen/argon ratios, and pCO2. These data will be used to gain insights and perspectives into the extent of ocean acidification in the western Arctic Ocean; the key physical, chemical, and biological processes influencing the saturation states of aragonite and calcite; and potential impacts to pelagic and benthic communities. Measurement of the oxygen:argon gas ratio relative to saturation allows evaluation of net community metabolism (the balance between photosynthesis and respiration). Data were collected between October 3, 2011 and October 27, 2011 using an equilibrated inlet mass spectrometer connected to the USCGC Healy surface uncontaminated seawater supply. Nearly 15,000 datapoints were collected as the ship surveyed the Bering, Chukchi, and Beaufort sectors of the Pacific Arctic. The data file contains time, latitude, longitude, surface temperature, surface salinity, O2/Ar saturation, and O2 saturation.