Changes in pH with Depth Application
Your Objective
Use pH with depth data to determine if there are relationships over time across different regions of the ocean.
- Make a prediction about what kind of changes or patterns in pH with depth you may observe between two different parts of the ocean.
- Compare patterns in the data below to determine what and if there are relationships over time and/or space.
Zoom to:
Data Tips
When the site loads, you are able to see pH data data from the Oregon Offshore (located in 580m of water) and the Oregon Slope Base (in 2,906m of water) both off of Oregon. You can interact with the data by:
- Selecting a different amount of time to look at by choosing between, 1 week, 2 weeks, or 1 month.
- Selecting a different part of the year to explore the data in ways that interest you by moving the highlighted section of the bottom graph to the right or left.
- Zooming in and out of the data to look at different time scales that interest you by changing the width of the highlighted section of the bottom graph to be more or less than a month.
The color denotes the time of year the pH data are from. January starts as light purple/pink and December ends as dark blue/purple.
Note, not all of the data may be accurate, as the sensor can become biofouled over time or other sampling issues.
Questions for Thought
- Across what time periods are you able to observe pH data in these graphs?
- What is the first month and year there are data for each graph?
- What is the last month and year there are data for each graph?
- What is the overall range of pH data you are able to observe in these graph?
- What similarities and differences did you find in patterns of pH with depth over time between Coastal Offshore and Shallow Slope locations in temperate North Pacific Ocean locations?
- What other questions do you have about variations in patterns of pH with depth over time and space from these data?
Background Information
Click on the images below to learn more about where and how the dataset above was collected.
Dataset Information
The data for this activity was obtained from the following profiling pH instruments:
- Coastal Endurance, Oregon Offshore Cabled Shallow Profiler Mooring (CE04OSPS-SF01B-2B-PHSENA108)
- Cabled Array, Oregon Slope Base Shallow Profiler Mooring (RS01SBPS-SF01A-2D-PHSENA101)
The above datasets were downloaded from the OOI data portal. Complete profiles of the instrument were identified and the profile closest to midnight (GMT) each day was saved. This reduced the overall temporal resolution (and size) of the final dataset but it preserved the raw variability exhibited in individual profiles and measurements.