The dataset includes full-depth hydrographic profiles and current data collected by acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCPs). Water samples were collected and analysed for salinity, inorganic nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, silicon), organic nitrogen and phosphorus components, dissolved organic carbon and alkalinity. Measurements of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), sulphur hexafluoride (SF6) and helium/tritium tracers were also collected to identify ages of water masses. These core observations were supplemented by measurements made by tied PhD students: measurements of Dissolved Organic Nitrogen (DON) and Dissolved Organic Phosphorus (DOP); isotopic nitrogen signatures; atmospheric deposition of nitrogen and phosphorus; measurements of dissolved organic carbon and dissolved oxygen; and plankton respiration rates. These measurements were taken on the RRS Charles Darwin across the North Atlantic, departing from Bermuda on 1 May 2005 and arriving in Lisbon on 15 June 2005. Data were collected via a number of conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) casts and continuous underway measurements. The study aimed to examine why ocean temperatures are rising within the tropics and mid-latitudes of the North Atlantic but decreasing at high latitudes. Investigators: National Oceanography Centre, Southampton (NOCS): Elaine McDonagh, Brian King, Harry Bryden, Richard Sanders, Paula Mcleod . University of Liverpool: Ric Williams, George Wolff, Rhiannon Mather, Susan Leadbetter. University of East Anglia: Carol Robinson, Andy Watson, Tim Jickells, Ute Schuster. Proudman Oceanography Laboratory: Clare Postlethwaite.

The Ocean Surface Mixing, Ocean Sub-mesoscale Interaction Study (OSMOSIS) data set contains a variety of oceanographic measurements including a year long time series of the properties of the ocean surface boundary layer and its controlling 3D physical processes. The core observations include measurements of temperature, salinity, nutrients, currents and shear harvested from a suite of instrumentation including CTDs, ocean gliders, drifter buoys and moored sensors. OSMOSIS data were collected during three cruises. The first cruise undertook preliminary exploratory work in the Clyde Sea (September 2011) to hone techniques and strategies. The following cruises carried out mooring deployments and recovery in the vicinity of the Porcupine Abyssal Plain (PAP) observatory (in late Summer 2012 and 2013 respectively). Additional opportunist ship time being factored in to support the ambitious glider operations associated with OSMOSIS. This multiple year study will combine traditional observational techniques, such as moorings and CTDs, with the latest autonomous sampling technologies (including ocean gliders), capable of delivering near real-time scientific measurements through the water column. The OSMOSIS data set will contain high-resolution vertical measurements, which will shed light on the complex turbulent processes that drive the deepening of the OSBL and similarly the sub-mesoscale processes promoting OSBL re-stratification. Continuous mooring and glider measurements over a complete annual cycle will also provide invaluable insight into how the OSBL evolves over time. The NERC OSMOSIS Consortium brings together scientists from various UK research centres including the University of Southampton School of Ocean and Earth Sciences, University of Reading, Bangor and the National Oceanography Centre (NOC).

The dataset contains physical, biogeochemical and biological data, including measurements of water temperature, salinity, fluorescence, dissolved gases and current velocities; plankton samples from nets and plankton recorders; water samples for analysis of nutrients, phytoplankton, radioactivity and biogeochemical parameters; benthic cores; meteorological time series (pressure, temperature, humidity, wind velocities); atmospheric samples and ocean-atmosphere fluxes; and results from incubation experiments. The data were collected north of the Crozet Plateau in the Southern Ocean/Southwest Indian Ocean on RRS Discovery cruises D285 (3rd November - 10th December 2004) and D286 (13th December 2004 - 21st January 2005). Much of the data collection focussed on a series of Major Stations (called M1 to M10), with measurements being collected at these stations every two or three days. Conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) casts were undertaken at each station, providing both hydrographic data and water samples from a range of depths. Other work at each Major Station included zooplankton nets, Longhurst-Hardy Plankton Recorder (LHPR) tows, sediment coring and Argo float deployment. In between Major Stations some additional CTD casts were undertaken. The SeaSoar oceanographic undulator provided further hydrographic data, while hull-mounted acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCPs) provided current velocity data across the survey area. In addition, continuous underway measurements of hydrographic and meteorological parameters and surface water samples were collected along the cruise track. Five moorings were deployed, one of which was recovered at the end of D286. The other four, including sediment traps, current profilers and CTDs were deployed for one year. CROZEX (CROZet circulation, iron fertilization and Export production experiment) is a complex, multidisciplinary project to examine, from surface to sediment, the structure, causes and consequences of a naturally occurring annual phytoplankton bloom that forms. This collaborative project involved researchers in Ireland and the UK, and was administered by the National Oceanography Centre (NOC), Southampton. Data are managed by the British Oceanographic Data Centre. Much of the CROZEX data processing is ongoing and a number of datasets have yet to be submitted to BODC. The data described here are those presently held by BODC, with the exception of the Argo floats (these data are not expected by BODC and should be accessible via the Argo website) and the four year-long mooring deployments (data from these will be submitted to BODC in the future).

The dataset comprises hydrographic profiles (temperature, salinity, oxygen, fluorometer, transmissometer, irradiance) and along track measurements (bathymetry, surface meteorology, sea surface hydrography), with discrete measurements including water chemistry (organic and inorganic nutrients, particulate organic carbon and nitrogen, dissolved gases, trace metals), biology (phytoplankton, zooplankton, primary production, community respiration, chlorophyll, pigments) and atmospheric particulates (major ions, organics and trace metals). Data have been collected from meridional transects of the Atlantic Ocean (between the UK and the Falkland Islands, South Africa or South America) from 1995 to the present day. The Atlantic Meridional Transect (AMT) programme aims to study the factors determining the ecological and biogeochemical variability of planktonic ecosystems in the tropical and temperate Atlantic Ocean, and their links to atmospheric processes. The majority of the data are available to academia for re-use and re-purpose but data from recent cruises may be subject to a moratorium which allows first use for data originators. The AMT is coordinated by Andy Rees (AMT Principal Investigator) and Miss Dawn Ashby (AMT Project Officer) at the Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML) in conjunction with the National Oceanography Centre. Since its inception the programme has involved researchers from several different countries and has acted as a platform for national and international collaboration. Data are managed by the British Oceanographic Data Centre.

The data set comprises a diverse collection of physical, chemical and biological measurements, encompassing over 1000 parameters. There are data from over 1650 conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD)/rosette stations, over 300 core profiles, over 370 sediment trap samples and much, much more. Most of this effort was directed at the region of the east Atlantic margin between La Chapelle Bank and the Goban Spur (between France and Ireland). In addition, there were two secondary areas of interest: the Norwegian Shelf Break just off Tromso and the Iberian Margin, either off Vigo or in the vicinity of the Tagus estuary. Measurements were collected from April 1993 until the end of December 1995 during 55 research cruise legs. Data were collected using a variety of equipment and techniques, including expendable bathythermography (XBTs), CTDs and oceanographic undulators with auxiliary sensors. These hydrographic profiles were accompanied by net hauls, plankton recorder deployments, sediment cores and comprehensive water and air sampling programmes during which a wide variety of chemical and biological parameters were measured. The station data were supplemented by underway measurements of oceanographic and meteorological properties. Results from production and trace metal experiments are also included in the dataset, as are bathymetric data from the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) GEBCO digital Atlas, air-sea flux measurements and data from moored instruments and benthic landers that were deployed for periods from a few weeks to a year. The dataset also includes imagery from satellites, water column and seabed photography, scanning electron micrographs and X-ray photographs. FORTRAN source code for biogeochemical models developed during OMEX I is also included. The aim of the project was to study biogeochemical processes at the shelf break and to quantify the fluxes of material between the shelf and the open ocean. OMEX I involved scientists from 30 institutions in 10 countries. BODC is assembling the data sets collected during OMEX I into its database system and the data are also available on CD-ROM.