IMOS - SOOP Ocean Carbon Dioxide Data from RV Aurora Australis voyage AA1112V4 (Fremantle-Hobart)

This data was collected in February/March 2012 by the IMOS Ship of Opportunity Underway CO2 Measurement research group on RV Aurora Australis (IMOS platform code: VNAA) voyage AA1112V4.

Departed: Fremantle, Western Australia, February 15, 2012 Arrived: Hobart, Tasmania, March 15, 2012

CO2 System Overview: The fugacity of carbon dioxide (fCO2) in surface seawater was measured using a General Oceanics Inc. automated system (Model 8050; Pierrot et al 2009). Seawater is sprayed into an equilibration chamber and CO2 in the headspace gas equilibrates with the seawater. The headspace gas is pumped through a thermoelectric condenser followed by a nafion drying tube before flowing through a Licor 7000 non-dispersive infrared gas analyser used to measure the CO2 mole fraction (XCO2) of the dried air. The gas flow is stopped temporarily for the CO2 measurements, which are made at atmospheric pressure. A set of four CO2 standards that cover the range of CO2 values expected in the ocean are analysed about every three hours to calibrate the gas analyser. Atmospheric XCO2 (dry) is measured after the standards by pumping clean outside air from an intake on the forward mast of the ship.

Seawater intake and ancillary data: The seawater intake is at about 6 m depth. A remote temperature sensor (Seabird Electronics SBE38) located at the intake is used to measure sea surface temperature (SST). Sea surface salinity is measured using a thermosalinograph (Seabird Electronics SBE21) mounted in the oceanographic lab next to the pCO2 system. The travel time between the intake and CO2 system is typically about 70 seconds with warming usually less than 0.7ºC in cold waters near freezing. The thermosalinograph water is from the same intake and supply line.

Meteorological data, salinity, SST, and ships position and time are taken from the ship’s logging system.