《3.1 Temperaturesalinity products》.pdfVIP

3.1 Temperature/salinity products Argo floats record T/S at a relatively fine vertical resolution (typically 1-5 dbar in the upper ocean and coarser resolution at depth), from 2000 dbar to the sea surface. These measurements of T and S are then stored in a file for that particular float at that particular location and time. Thus, it is not straightforward to obtain, for example, T and S in a specific region (covered by several floats) or at a location over a specific time range. This project will help users by creating binned T/S data that is further interpolated onto a vertical and horizontal grid. Since some users prefer to do their own interpolation, we propose two different products: one gridded vertically at standard depths and the other gridded horizontally. In each case the data set will be in NetCDF format and will include, besides the data, latitude, longitude, time, depth of measurement, and a flag indicating the region (e.g., marginal seas and subbasins will have a different ID). The dataset will be constructed so that future data can be concatenated onto the end (rather than users having to replace the entire file during every update). Argo-derived in situ temperature will be used along with salinity to compute potential temperature and potential density. T/S/ρwill then be interpolated to standard depth levels (Levitus, 1982) for the first data product. This product is designed for modelers, who typically want a vertically gridded product to validate their model or use for assimilation. The second product will include an interpolation to a horizontal grid, nominally on a 1x1 degree grid. These products will be based on 10-day downloads of the profile and trajectory files from the US GDAC. Additionally, derived quantities of mixed layer depth (MLD), based on a temperature criterion (Kara et al., 2000a) and barrier