I. Data Set Descriptors A. Title: Jackson O. Blanton. 2015. Continuous salinity, temperature and depth measurements from moored hydrographic data loggers deployed at GCE8_Hydro (Altamaha River near Aligator Creek, Georgia) from 01-Jan-2004 through 31-Dec-2004. Georgia Coastal Ecosystems LTER Data Catalog (data set PHY-GCEM-0505f; http://gce-lter.marsci.uga.edu/public/app/dataset_details.asp?accession=PHY-GCEM-0505f) B. Accession Number: PHY-GCEM-0505f C. Description 1. Originator(s): Name: Jackson O. Blanton Address: 10 Ocean Science Circle, Savannah, Georgia Postal Code: 31411 Country: USA Email: jack.blanton@skio.usg.edu 2. Abstract: Conductivity, temperature and pressure were measured continuously at Georgia Coastal Ecosystems LTER sampling location GCE8_Hydro (Altamaha River near Aligator Creek, Georgia) from 01-Jan-2004 through 31-Dec-2004. Observations were logged at 30 minute intervals by moored Sea-Bird Electronics MicroCAT 37-SM data loggers and downloaded approximately semi-monthly. Salinity, depth and sigma-t (density anomaly) were calculated from the measured parameters using standard UNESCO algorithms. This data set was collected as part of the GCE-LTER Project continuous salinity, temperature and water level monitoring program. 3. Study Type: Monitoring 4. Study Themes: Physical Oceanography 5. LTER Core Areas: Inorganic Fluxes 6. Georeferences: geographic coordinates as data set columns 7. Submission Date: not submitted D. Keywords: conductivity, density, depth, Hydrographic Moorings, hydrography, monitoring, mooring, pressure, salinity, sonde, temperature, water column, water quality II. Research Origin Descriptors A. Overall Project Description 1. Project Title: Georgia Coastal Ecosystems LTER Project 2. Principal Investigators: Name: James T. Hollibaugh Address: Dept. of Marine Sciences, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia Postal Code: 30602-3636 Country: USA Email: aquadoc@uga.edu 3. Funding Period: May 01, 2000 to May 01, 2006 4. Objectives: To investigate the linkages between coastal and distant upland areas in central Georgia mediated by surface and ground water delivery to the coastal zone. This will be addressed by examining the relationship between variability in environmental factors driven by river flow, primarily salinity, and ecosystem processes and structure. 5. Abstract: We propose to establish a Long Term Ecological Research site on the central Georgia coast in the vicinity of Sapelo Island. This is a barrier island and marsh complex with the Altamaha River, one of the largest and least developed rivers on the east coast of the US, as the primary source of fresh water. The proposed study would investigate the linkages between local and distant upland areas mediated by water - surface water and ground water - delivery to the coastal zone. We would explicitly examine the relationship between variability in environmental factors driven by river flow, primarily salinity because we can measure it at high frequency, and ecosystem processes and structure. We will accomplish this by comparing estuary/marsh complexes separated from the Altamaha River by one or two lagoonal estuary/marsh complexes that damp and attenuate the river signal. This spatial gradient is analogous to the temporal trend in riverine influence expected as a result of development in the watershed. We will implement a monitoring system that documents physical and biological variables and use the time trends and spatial distributions of these variables and of their variance structure to address questions about the factors controlling distributions, trophic structure, diversity, and biogeochemistry. An existing GIS-based hydrologic model will be modified to incorporate changes in river water resulting from changes in land use patterns that can be expected as the watershed develops. This model will be linked to ecosystem models and will serve as an heuristic and management tool. Another consequence of coastal development is that as river flow decreases, groundwater flow increases and becomes nutrified. We will compare the effects of ground water discharge from the surficial aquifer in relatively pristine (Sapelo Island) versus more urbanized (mainland) sites to assess the relative importance of fresh water versus nutrients to productivity, structure and biomass turnover rate in marshes influenced by groundwater. We will also investigate the effect of marine processes (tides, storm surge) on mixing across the fresh/salt interface in the surficial aquifer. Additional physical studies will relate the morphology of salt marsh - tidal creek channel complexes to tidal current distributions and exchange. These findings will be incorporated into a physical model that will be coupled to an existing ecosystem model. The land/ocean margin ecosystem lies at the interface between two ecosystems in which distinctly different groups of decomposers control organic matter degradation. The terrestrial ecosystem is largely dominated by fungal decomposers, while bacterial decomposers dominate the marine ecosystem. Both groups are important in salt marsh-dominated ecosystems. Specific studies will examine, at the level of individual cells and hyphae, the relationship bacteria and fungi in the consortia that decompose standing dead Spartina and other marsh plants and examine how, or if, this changes along the salinity gradient. 6. Funding Source: NSF OCE 9982133 B. Sub-project Description 1. Site Description a. Geographic Location: GCE-AL -- Altamaha River, Georgia, USA GCE8_Hydro -- Alligator Creek hydrographic datalogger deployment Coordinates: GCE-AL -- NW: 81 34 56.3 W, 31 24 05.1 N NE: 81 14 16.6 W, 31 24 05.1 N SE: 81 14 16.6 W, 31 17 45.7 N SW: 81 34 56.3 W, 31 17 45.7 N GCE8_Hydro -- 81 24 36.2 W, 31 18 37.0 N b. Physiographic Region: GCE-AL -- Estuary and tidal marsh GCE8_Hydro -- Estuary and tidal marsh c. Landform Components: GCE-AL -- Intertidal marsh bordering sounds, tidal channels and creeks GCE8_Hydro -- Intertidal marsh bordering sounds, tidal channels and creeks d. Hydrographic Characteristics: GCE-AL -- Site encompasses the Altamaha River estuary and nearby tidal creeks, and is subject to 2-3.4m semi-diurnal tides. High freshwater input from the Altamaha River, one of the largest rivers in the Southeastern United States. GCE8_Hydro -- Site encompasses the Altamaha River estuary and nearby tidal creeks, and is subject to 2-3.4m semi-diurnal tides. High freshwater input from the Altamaha River, one of the largest rivers in the Southeastern United States. e. Topographic Attributes: GCE-AL -- Flat, with elevations ranging from 0-3.4m above mean low tide GCE8_Hydro -- Flat, with elevations ranging from 0-3.4m above mean low tide f. Geology, Lithology and Soils: GCE-AL -- unspecified GCE8_Hydro -- unspecified g. Vegetation Communities: GCE-AL -- unspecified GCE8_Hydro -- unspecified h. History of Land Use and Disturbance: i. Climate: Climate summary for Sapelo Island, Georgia, based on NWS data from 1980-2001: Daily-aggregated Values: Mean (sample standard deviation) mean air temperature: 19.78°C (6.98°C) minimum air temperature: 14.64°C (7.54°C) maximum air temperature: 24.62°C (6.78°C) total precipitation: 3.58mm (11.35mm) Yearly-aggregated Values: Mean (sample standard deviation) total precipitation (1981-2000): 1302mm (250mm) 2. Experimental or Sampling Design a. Design Characteristics: Conductivity, temperature and pressure were continuously monitored using an autonomous data-logging sensor package (sonde) that was moored to a piling and submerged 1-1.5m below mean low water. b. Permanent Plots: none c. Data Collection Duration and Frequency: The MicroCAT was programmed to autonomously measure and log conductivity, temperature and pressure at a sampling rate of 30 minutes (based on its internal chronometer). Upon retrieval the data was downloaded from the instrument via RS-232 serial communications and processed using custom Matlab(r) procedures to calculate depth (i.e. from pressure and latitude), salinity and sigma-t (i.e. from conductivity and temperature), and date and time components from sample time stamps. Beginning of Observations: 01-Jan-2004 End of Observations: 31-Dec-2004 3. Research Methods a. Field and Laboratory Methods: Deployment -- The MicroCAT was mounted inside a protective PVC pipe enclosure and attached to a wooden piling (~12 inch diameter) that was driven firmly into the substrate. The enclosure was constructed from a 10-foot length of 6-inch (internal diameter) PVC pipe that was perforated all over by drilling 1.5-inch holes (at approximately 4-inch spacing); this permits proper water circulation within the enclosure. The bottom of the PVC pipe was submerged about 5 feet below the water surface at low tide and bolted (vertically) to the piling. The MicroCAT was deployed by lowering it into the enclosure on a 0.375-inch stainless steel cable, and bolting the cable to the piling, so that the bottom of the data logger was ~3 inches above the bottom of the PVC pipe. A weighted surveyor's tape was then used to measure the distance from the substrate to the pressure sensor on the MicroCAT for calculation of total water column depth from pressure readings. The mooring was inspected every 1-3 weeks, and any visible fouling of the enclosure or MicroCAT was removed with a brush or scaper. Retrieval and Calibration -- At the end of each measurement period (approximately 2 months), the MicroCAT was unshackled from the cable and returned to the laboratory. The stored data was uploaded to a computer using a RS-232 serial cable and Sea-Bird Electronics SEATERM software. The MicroCAT was then cleaned to remove encrusting material and calibrated with a reference instrument at 4 to 5 salinity levels, generally ranging from 30 to 5 PSU. Data Processing -- Data were processed after each retrieval using custom programs in the GCE Data Toolbox for MATLAB (parse_37sm and imp_gcesonde). Depth was calculated from recorded pressure and latitude values, and salinity and sigma-t were calculated from recorded conductivity and temperature values using standard UNESCO algorithms (reference: Unesco. 1983. Algorithms for computation of fundamental properties of seawater, 1983. Unesco Technical Papers in Marine Science No. 44, 53 pp.). Data were then plotted and visually inspected for evidence of biofouling of the conductivity sensor (i.e. prolonged periods of damped tidal oscillation in conductivity signal with no corresponding changes in temperature signal and no wind or rainfall events recorded at nearby monitoring stations, or periods of damped oscillation immediately followed by normal oscillation after instrument maintenance or replacement). Conductivity values recorded during periods of suspected biofouling were flagged as I (invalid) if visible fouling was noted in maintenance logs, and Q (questionable) if no visible fouling was noted. b. Instrumentation: Moored CTD datalogger (Sea-Bird Electronics Inc., model MicroCAT 37-SM S/N 1790, last factory calibration 28-Feb-2001) Moored CTD datalogger (Sea-Bird Electronics Inc., model MicroCAT 37-SM S/N 1794, last factory calibration 20-Feb-2001) Moored CTD datalogger (Sea-Bird Electronics Inc., model MicroCAT 37-SM S/N 1796, last factory calibration 24-Feb-2001) Moored CTD datalogger (Sea-Bird Electronics Inc., model MicroCAT 37-SM S/N 2539, last factory calibration 19-Aug-2002) Moored CTD datalogger (Sea-Bird Electronics Inc., model MicroCAT 37-SM S/N 1794, last factory calibration 20-Feb-2001) c. Taxonomy and Systematics: not applicable d. Speclies List: e. Permit History: 4. Project Personnel a. Personnel: 1: Jackson O. Blanton 2: Julie Amft 3: Kenneth Helm 4: Wade M. Sheldon b. Affiliations: 1: Skidaway Institute of Oceanography, Savannah, Georgia 2: Skidaway Institute of Oceanography, Savannah, Georgia 3: University of Georgia Marine Institute, Sapelo Island, Georgia 4: University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia III. Data Set Status and Accessibility A. Status 1. Latest Update: 03-Jun-2015 2. Latest Archive Date: 3. Latest Metadata Update: 03-Jun-2015 4. Data Verification Status: new submission B. Accessibility 1. Storage Location and Medium: Stored at GCE-LTER Data Management Office Dept. of Marine Sciences Univ. of Georgia Athens, GA 30602-3636 USA on media: electronic data download (WWW) or compact disk 2. Contact Person: Name: Wade M. Sheldon, Jr. Position: GCE-LTER Information Manager Address: Dept. of Marine Sciences, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia Postal Code: 30602-3636 Country: USA Email: gcelter@uga.edu 3. Copyright Restrictions: not copyrighted 4. Restrictions: All publications based on this data set must cite the contributor and Georgia Coastal Ecosystems LTER project, and two copies of the manuscript must be submitted to the GCE-LTER Information Management Office. a. Release Date: Affiliates: Mar 17, 2003, Public: May 01, 2003 b. Citation: Data provided by the Georgia Coastal Ecosystems Long Term Ecological Research Project, supported by funds from National Science Foundation Grants OCE-9982133, OCE-0620959 and OCE-1237140 c. Disclaimer: The user assumes all responsibility for errors in judgement based on interpretation of data and analyses presented in this data set. 5. Costs: free electronic data download via WWW, distribution on CD may be subject to nominal processing and handling fee IV. Data Structural Descriptors A. Data Set File 1. File Name: PHY-GCEM-0505f_5_0.CSV 2. Size: 17568 records 3. File Format: ASCII text (comma-separated value format) 3a. Delimiters: single comma 4. Header Information: 5 lines of ASCII text 5. Alphanumeric Attributes: none 6. Quality Control Flag Codes: Q = questionable value, I = invalid value (out of range), S = spike/noise, X = excise row flag 7. Authentication Procedures: not specified 8. Calculations: Depth(m) = sw_dpth(Pressure(dbar),Latitude(deg)) -- sw_dpth (salt water depth from pressure) Matlab function, Revision: 1.3, Date: 10-Oct-1994 (C)1992 CSIRO, Phil Morgan (morgan@ml.csiro.au) [Salinity(psu),Sigma_t] = salsig2(Depth(m),Temperature(C),Conductivity(mmho/cm)) -- salsig2 (salinity and sigma-t from conductivity, temperature and depth) Matlab function Revision 06-May-1992 by V. Holliday, as modified by Tom Gross and Julie Amft (julie@skio.peachnet.edu) 9. Processing History: Software version: GCE Data Toolbox Version 3.9.3 (06-Apr-2015) Data structure version: GCE Data Structure 1.1 (29-Mar-2001) Original data files processed: 08040290.asc (4409 records) 08040594.asc (4989 records) 08040896.asc (4409 records) 08041139.asc (4656 records) 08050294.asc (4121 records) Data processing history: 11-Feb-2004: data uploaded from SBE 37-SM MicroCAT using SEATERM software version 1.32 16-Feb-2004: new GCE Data Structure 1.1 created ('newstruct') 16-Feb-2004: data imported from processed SBE SM-37 sonde data file '08040290.asc' (4409 records) ('imp_gcesonde') 16-Feb-2004: deleted column Second from the structure ('deletecols') 16-Feb-2004: calculated Julian days from individual date columns, added 'Date' column at position 1 ('add_datecol') 16-Feb-2004: added column 'Instrument' at position 0 ('addcol') 16-Feb-2004: added column 'Pump' at position 2 ('addcol') 16-Feb-2004: added column 'Latitude' at position 0 ('addcol') 16-Feb-2004: added column 'Longitude' at position 0 ('addcol') 16-Feb-2004: added column 'Site' at position 0 ('addcol') 16-Feb-2004: added column 'Calibration' at position 19 ('addcol') 16-Feb-2004: updated 25 metadata fields in the Data, Dataset, Site, Status, Study, Supplement sections ('addmeta') 16-Feb-2004: Q/C flagging criteria applied, 'flags' field updated ('dataflag') 16-Feb-2004: edited structure data ('ui_datagrid'): deleted record(s) 4408 and 4409 16-Feb-2004: Q/C flagging criteria applied, 'flags' field updated ('dataflag') 17-Feb-2004: QA/QC flags assigned by visual inspection (ui_visualqc); flags set on 510 records in Conductivity; flags cleared on Conductivity record(s): 2124, 2125, 2126 and 2127 17-Feb-2004: added QA/QC flags from column(s) Conductivity and Temperature to flags for column(s) Salinity and Sigma_t, and set QA/QC criteria to 'manual' (copyflags) 18-Feb-2004: manually edited data set metadata ('ui_editmetadata') 18-Feb-2004: edited data set title in structure and metadata ('ui_editor') 26-May-2004: 4986 rows added at the bottom of the data set ('datamerge') 26-May-2004: updated 15 metadata fields in the Data, Dataset, Status, Study, Supplement sections ('addmeta') 26-May-2004: manually edited data set metadata ('ui_editmetadata') 26-May-2004: edited data set title in structure and metadata ('ui_editor') 27-Aug-2004: 4407 rows added at the bottom of the data set ('datamerge') 27-Aug-2004: updated 15 metadata fields in the Data, Dataset, Status, Study, Supplement sections ('addmeta') 27-Aug-2004: manually edited data set metadata ('ui_editmetadata') 27-Aug-2004: edited data set title in structure and metadata ('ui_editor') 27-Aug-2004: manually edited data set metadata ('ui_editmetadata') 27-Aug-2004: documented flagged and missing values as data set anomalies in the metadata ('add_anomalies') 27-Aug-2004: manually edited data set metadata ('ui_editmetadata') 02-Dec-2004: units of column Date edited ('ui_editor') 02-Dec-2004: 4653 rows added at the bottom of the data set ('datamerge') 02-Dec-2004: updated 14 metadata fields in the Data, Dataset, Status, Study, Supplement sections ('addmeta') 02-Dec-2004: manually edited data set metadata ('ui_editmetadata') 02-Dec-2004: edited data set title in structure and metadata ('ui_editor') 02-Dec-2004: documented flagged and missing values as data set anomalies in the metadata ('add_anomalies') 01-Mar-2005: 4119 rows added at the bottom of the data set ('datamerge') 01-Mar-2005: updated 14 metadata fields in the Data, Dataset, Status, Study, Supplement sections ('addmeta') 01-Mar-2005: query 'Year=2004' run, returned 17543 of 22572 data rows ('querydata') 01-Mar-2005: automatically assigned study date metadata descriptors based on the range of date values in date/time columns (add_studydates) 01-Mar-2005: added 25 null records to fill in date/time interval gaps ('fill_date_gaps') 01-Mar-2005: sorted by column Date(ascending) ('sortdata') 01-Mar-2005: deleted existing datetime columns Year, Month, Day, Hour and Minute; updated Year, Month, Day, Hour and Minute datetime columns added after column Date ('add_datepartcols') 01-Mar-2005: manually edited data set metadata ('ui_editmetadata') 01-Mar-2005: edited data set title in structure and metadata ('ui_editor') 01-Mar-2005: documented flagged and missing values as data set anomalies in the metadata ('add_anomalies') 19-Apr-2005: QA/QC flags assigned by visual inspection (ui_visualqc); flags set on Temperature record(s): 9386 and 10691; flags set on Pressure record(s): 9386 and 10691 09-May-2005: added QA/QC flags from column(s) Pressure to flags for column(s) Temperature, Conductivity, Depth, TotalDepth, Salinity and Sigma_t, and set QA/QC criteria to 'manual' (copyflags) 09-May-2005: added QA/QC flags from column(s) Conductivity and Temperature to flags for column(s) Salinity and Sigma_t, and set QA/QC criteria to 'manual' (copyflags) 09-May-2005: converted values in column(s) Temperature, Conductivity, Pressure, Depth, TotalDepth, Salinity and Sigma_t assigned QA/QC flag(s) X (excise row flag) to NaN/empty: Temperature record(s) 9386 and 10691, Conductivity record(s) 9386 and 10691, Pressure record(s) 9386 and 10691, Depth record(s) 9386 and 10691, TotalDepth record(s) 9386 and 10691, Salinity record(s) 9386 and 10691, Sigma_t record(s) 9386 and 10691 ('nullflags') 09-May-2005: Q/C flagging criteria applied, 'flags' field updated ('dataflag') 09-May-2005: manually edited data set metadata ('ui_editmetadata') 09-May-2005: documented flagged and missing values as data set anomalies in the metadata ('add_anomalies') 15-Sep-2005: updated 3 metadata fields in the Status sections ('addmeta') 24-Feb-2006: updated 2 metadata fields in the Dataset, Status sections ('addmeta') 24-Feb-2006: removed 27 rows with empty values in columns Temperature, Conductivity, Pressure, Depth, TotalDepth, Salinity and Sigma_t ('compactrows') 24-Feb-2006: inserted 27 new records with date/time values and NaN/null data values (replicating common values in the non-data columns Site, Longitude, Latitude, Instrument, Pump and Calibration) to fill in date/time interval gaps in the data series ('fill_date_gaps') 24-Feb-2006: sorted by column Date(ascending) ('sortdata') 24-Feb-2006: deleted existing datetime columns Year, Month, Day, Hour and Minute; updated Year, Month, Day, Hour and Minute datetime columns added after column Date ('add_datepartcols') 17-Apr-2006: standardized case of date component column units to prevent unit conversion issues ('batch_update_datetime'): updated units for column Year from 'yyyy' to 'YYYY'; updated units for column Month from 'mm' to 'MM'; updated units for column Day from 'dd' to 'DD' 26-Sep-2008: query 'Year = 2004' run, returned 17568 of 17568 data rows ('querydata') 26-Sep-2008: updated title ('newtitle') 26-Sep-2008: updated 2 metadata fields in the Dataset, Status sections ('newtitle') 26-Sep-2008: updated 3 metadata fields in the Status sections ('addmeta') 22-Apr-2011: updated 3 metadata fields in the Status sections ('addmeta') 22-Apr-2011: updated 3 metadata fields in the Status sections ('addmeta') 16-Nov-2011: matched 17568 out of 17568 geographic coordinates in columns Latitude and Longitude to coordinates for registered locations in the file 'geo_locations.mat' within a distance tolerance of 0.5km (add_locations) 16-Nov-2011: added column 'Station' at position 2 ('addcol') 16-Nov-2011: Q/C flagging criteria applied for column(s) Station, 'flags' field updated ('dataflag') 16-Nov-2011: added geographic metadata based on matching values in column Station to location and station names registered in 'geo_locations.mat' ('add_sitemetadata') 16-Nov-2011: updated 9 metadata fields in the Site, Status sections ('add_sitemetadata') 03-Jun-2015: query 'Year=2004' run, returned 17568 of 17568 data rows ('querydata') 03-Jun-2015: copied QA/QC flags from column(s) Conductivity and Temperature to column(s) Salinity and Sigma_t, merging copied flags with any existing flags, and set QA/QC criteria for destination column(s) to 'manual' ('copyflags') 03-Jun-2015: imported all documentation metadata from the template 'GCE_Sonde_GCE1', retaining existing attribute descriptors for all columns ('meta_template') 03-Jun-2015: updated 44 metadata fields in the Data, Dataset, Project, Site, Status, Study, Supplement sections ('addmeta') 03-Jun-2015: updated title ('newtitle') 03-Jun-2015: added geographic metadata based on matching values in column Station to location and station names registered in 'geo_locations.mat' ('add_sitemetadata') 03-Jun-2015: updated 8 metadata fields in the Site sections ('addmeta') 03-Jun-2015: updated title ('newtitle') 03-Jun-2015: updated 1 metadata fields in the Dataset sections ('addmeta') 03-Jun-2015: deleted columns TotalDepth, Calibration and Pump from the structure ('deletecols') 03-Jun-2015: converted dates in column(s) Date to format yyyy-mm-dd HH:MM:SS 03-Jun-2015: flags for columns Temperature, Conductivity, Pressure, Depth, Salinity and Sigma_t converted to data columns, flag codes updated in metadata ('flags2cols') 03-Jun-2015: updated 6 metadata fields in the Data sections ('addmeta') 03-Jun-2015: updated 15 metadata fields in the Status, Data sections to reflect attribute metadata ('updatecols') 03-Jun-2015: parsed and formatted metadata ('listmeta') B. Variable Information 1. Variable Name: column 1. Site column 2. Station column 3. Longitude column 4. Latitude column 5. Instrument column 6. Date column 7. Year column 8. Month column 9. Day column 10. Hour column 11. Minute column 12. Temperature column 13. Flag_Temperature column 14. Conductivity column 15. Flag_Conductivity column 16. Pressure column 17. Flag_Pressure column 18. Depth column 19. Flag_Depth column 20. Salinity column 21. Flag_Salinity column 22. Sigma_t column 23. Flag_Sigma_t 2. Variable Definition: column 1. Nearest nominal GCE-LTER sampling site column 2. Station determined by geographic lookup of coordinates in reference file 'geo_locations.mat' using a distance tolerance of 0.5km column 3. Geographic longitude in decimal degrees column 4. Geographic latitude in decimal degrees column 5. Serial number of the SBE 37-SM MicroCAT instrument used for the observations column 6. Fractional days (based on 1 = January 1, 0000) column 7. Calendar year column 8. Calendar month column 9. Calendar day column 10. Hours - GMT column 11. Minutes column 12. Water temperature column 13. QA/QC flags for Water temperature (flagging criteria, where "x" is Temperature: x<0="Q", x>35="Q", Depth<0.1="Q", manual) column 14. Conductivity column 15. QA/QC flags for Conductivity (flagging criteria, where "x" is Conductivity: x<0="I", Depth<0.1="Q", manual) column 16. Water pressure at sensor (approximately equivalent to water depth within 3% error) column 17. QA/QC flags for Water pressure at sensor (approximately equivalent to water depth within 3% error) (flagging criteria, where "x" is Pressure: x<0.05="X", x>10="Q", manual) column 18. Water depth to the pressure sensor of the moored sonde column 19. QA/QC flags for Water depth to the pressure sensor of the moored sonde (flagging criteria, where "x" is Depth: x<0.05="Q", x>10="Q", manual) column 20. Salinity column 21. QA/QC flags for Salinity (flagging criteria, where "x" is Salinity: x<0="I", x>36="Q", Depth<0.1="Q", manual) column 22. Sigma-t (i.e. Density-1) column 23. QA/QC flags for Sigma-t (i.e. Density-1) (flagging criteria, where "x" is Sigma_t: x<-5="Q", x>28="Q", Depth<0.1="Q", manual) 3. Units of Measurement: column 1. none column 2. none column 3. degrees column 4. degrees column 5. none column 6. yyyy-mm-dd HH:MM:SS - GMT column 7. YYYY column 8. MM column 9. DD column 10. hr column 11. min column 12. °C column 13. none column 14. S/m column 15. none column 16. dbar column 17. none column 18. m column 19. none column 20. PSU column 21. none column 22. kg/m^3 column 23. none 4. Data Type a. Storage Type: column 1. integer column 2. string column 3. floating-point column 4. floating-point column 5. integer column 6. string column 7. integer column 8. integer column 9. integer column 10. integer column 11. integer column 12. floating-point column 13. string column 14. floating-point column 15. string column 16. floating-point column 17. string column 18. floating-point column 19. string column 20. floating-point column 21. string column 22. floating-point column 23. string b. Variable Codes: Flag_Conductivity: Q = questionable value Flag_Salinity: Q = questionable value Flag_Sigma_t: Q = questionable value c. Numeric Range: column 1. 8 to 8 column 2. (none) column 3. -81.4093 to -81.4093 column 4. 31.3104 to 31.3104 column 5. 1790 to 2539 column 6. (none) column 7. 2004 to 2004 column 8. 1 to 12 column 9. 1 to 31 column 10. 0 to 23 column 11. 0 to 30 column 12. 7.5243 to 31.566 column 13. (none) column 14. 0.00564 to 4.4356 column 15. (none) column 16. 0.361 to 3.81 column 17. (none) column 18. 0.3585 to 3.7836 column 19. (none) column 20. 0.038449 to 27.0185 column 21. (none) column 22. -4.5101 to 16.5074 column 23. (none) d. Missing Value Code: 5. Data Format a. Column Type: column 1. numerical column 2. text column 3. numerical column 4. numerical column 5. numerical column 6. text column 7. numerical column 8. numerical column 9. numerical column 10. numerical column 11. numerical column 12. numerical column 13. text column 14. numerical column 15. text column 16. numerical column 17. text column 18. numerical column 19. text column 20. numerical column 21. text column 22. numerical column 23. text b. Number of Columns: 23 c. Decimal Places: column 1. 0 column 2. 0 column 3. 6 column 4. 6 column 5. 0 column 6. 0 column 7. 0 column 8. 0 column 9. 0 column 10. 0 column 11. 0 column 12. 3 column 13. 0 column 14. 3 column 15. 0 column 16. 3 column 17. 0 column 18. 3 column 19. 0 column 20. 3 column 21. 0 column 22. 3 column 23. 0 6. Logical Variable Type: column 1. nominal (discrete) column 2. nominal (none) column 3. geographic coordinate (continuous) column 4. geographic coordinate (continuous) column 5. nominal (discrete) column 6. datetime (none) column 7. datetime (discrete) column 8. datetime (discrete) column 9. datetime (discrete) column 10. datetime (discrete) column 11. datetime (discrete) column 12. data (continuous) column 13. coded value (none) column 14. data (continuous) column 15. coded value (none) column 16. data (continuous) column 17. coded value (none) column 18. calculation (continuous) column 19. coded value (none) column 20. calculation (continuous) column 21. coded value (none) column 22. calculation (continuous) column 23. coded value (none) 7. Flagging Criteria: column 1. none column 2. flag_locationcoords(x,col_Longitude,col_Latitude,0.25,"sensitive","geo_locations.mat")=" Q" column 3. x<-180="Q";x>180="Q" column 4. x<-90="Q";x>90="Q" column 5. none column 6. none column 7. x<2000="Q";x>2010="Q" column 8. x<1="Q";x>12="Q" column 9. x<1="Q";x>31="Q" column 10. x<0="Q";x>23="Q" column 11. x<0="Q";x>59="Q" column 12. x<0="Q";x>35="Q";col_Depth<0.1="Q";manually-assigned flags column 13. none column 14. x<0="I";col_Depth<0.1="Q";manually-assigned flags column 15. none column 16. x<0.05="X";x>10="Q";manually-assigned flags column 17. none column 18. x<0.05="Q";x>10="Q";manually-assigned flags column 19. none column 20. x<0="I";x>36="Q";col_Depth<0.1="Q";manually-assigned flags column 21. none column 22. x<-5="Q";x>28="Q";col_Depth<0.1="Q";manually-assigned flags column 23. none C. Data Anomalies: Converted values in column(s) Temperature, Conductivity, Pressure, Depth, TotalDepth, Salinity and Sigma_t assigned QA/QC flag(s) X (excise row flag) to NaN/empty: Temperature record(s) 9386 and 10691, Conductivity record(s) 9386 and 10691, Pressure record(s) 9386 and 10691, Depth record(s) 9386 and 10691, TotalDepth record(s) 9386 and 10691, Salinity record(s) 9386 and 10691, Sigma_t record(s) 9386 and 10691. Values of 27 records in Temperature are missing for dates: 02/11/2004, 05/25/2004, 07/14/2004, 08/10/2004, 08/25/2004, 11/30/2004. Values of 227 records in Conductivity were flagged as Q (questionable value) for dates: 01/01/2004-01/05/2004. Values of 27 records in Conductivity are missing for dates: 02/11/2004, 05/25/2004, 07/14/2004, 08/10/2004, 08/25/2004, 11/30/2004. Values of 27 records in Pressure are missing for dates: 02/11/2004, 05/25/2004, 07/14/2004, 08/10/2004, 08/25/2004, 11/30/2004. Values of 27 records in Depth are missing for dates: 02/11/2004, 05/25/2004, 07/14/2004, 08/10/2004, 08/25/2004, 11/30/2004. Values of 27 records in TotalDepth are missing for dates: 02/11/2004, 05/25/2004, 07/14/2004, 08/10/2004, 08/25/2004, 11/30/2004. Values of 227 records in Salinity were flagged as Q (questionable value) for dates: 01/01/2004-01/05/2004. Values of 27 records in Salinity are missing for dates: 02/11/2004, 05/25/2004, 07/14/2004, 08/10/2004, 08/25/2004, 11/30/2004. Values of 227 records in Sigma_t were flagged as Q (questionable value) for dates: 01/01/2004-01/05/2004. Values of 27 records in Sigma_t are missing for dates: 02/11/2004, 05/25/2004, 07/14/2004, 08/10/2004, 08/25/2004, 11/30/2004. V. Supplemental Descriptors A. Data Acquisition 1. Data Forms: Copies of CTD cast logs and raw data are maintained at the Georgia Coastal Ecosystems Information Management Office 2. Form Location: GCE-LTER Information Management Office, Dept. of Marine Sciences, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602 3. Data Entry Validation: Data format is validated during download by Sea-Bird Electronics Sea-Soft version 4.246, and also by custom data import programs in the GCE Data Toolbox for Matlab. B. Quality Assurance/Quality Control Procedures: QA/QC flags are generated automatically according to domain criteria specified for each data column, then subsequently reviewed and revised as appropriate. Coded flag columns are generated for each data column, listing qualifier flags assigned to the data value on the corresponding row. C. Supplemental Materials: not applicable D. Computer Programs: Sea-Bird Electronics Sea-Soft version 4.246, MATLAB version 2013B E. Archival Practices: Data sets and documentation are stored in structured binary (Matlab 5.x files) and delimited ASCII text formats, and archived on magnetic tape and CD at the GCE LTER Information Management Office at the University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA F. Publications: unspecified G. History of Data Set Usage 1. Data Request History: unspecified 2. Data Set Update History: not updated 3. Review History: Instrument deployment, maintenance and retrieval observations: site #8 serial#1790 S/N 1790 SITE 8 Set up by K. Helm Time on 11/11/03 2100GMT Time into water 11/11/03 1255GMT Time out of water 02/11/04 1559GMT Time off 02/11/04 1744 GMT Sample Interval 1800sec. Deployment Information Date 11/11/03 Time 1255GMT YSI sal 4.2 Ysi temp 19.3 Water depth 23'-7" Sensor height above bottom 15'-1" Retrieval Information Date 02/11/04 Time 1559 GMT YSI sal 0.1 Ysi temp 11.0 Water depth 23'-6" Instrument condition Sensor tube - very clean Upload file name 08040290 Maintenance Record Date 11/20/03 Time 1756 GMT Ysi sal 0.2 Ysi temp 18.7 Water depth - 20'-3" Sensor tube - very clean Date 12/8/03 Time 1529 GMT Ysi sal 4.4 Ysi temp 12.0 Water depth 23'-1" sensor tube - very clean Date 12/18/03 Time 1427 GMT Ysi sal 0.4 Ysi temp 9.8 Water depth 17'-10" Sensor tube - very clean Date 1/05/04 Time 1720 GMT Ysi sal 0.7 Ysi temp 13.9 Water depth 18'-0" Sensor tube - very clean Date 1/20/04 Time 1434 Ysi Sal 6.6Ysi Temp 10.8 Depth 24'-1" Cond sensor tube -very clean Date 2/3/04 Time 1432 Ysi sal 8.1 Ysi temp 9.7 Depth 21'-7" Cond sensor tube very clean Instrument deployment, maintenance and retrieval observations: site #08 serial#1794 S/N 1794 SITE 8 Set up by K. Helm Time on 02/12/04 2000 GMT Time into water 02/12/04 1559 GMT Time out of water 05/25/04 1651 GMT Time off 05/25/04 1846 GMT Sample Interval 1800sec. Deployment Information Date 02/12/04 Time 1559GMT YSI sal 0.1 Ysi temp 11.0 Water depth 23'-6" Sensor height above bottom 15'-1"" Retrieval Information Date 05/25/04 Time 1651 GMT YSI sal 8.9 Ysi temp 28.6 Water depth 23'-11" Instrument condition Sensor tube - very clean Upload file name 08040594 Maintenance Record Date 03/1/04 Time 1533 GMT Ysi sal 0.0 Ysi temp 11.9 Water depth - 20'-4" Sensor tube - very clean Date 03/18/04 Time 1612 GMT Ysi sal 0.2 Ysi temp 18.0 Water depth 19'-7" sensor tube - very clean Date 03/29/04 Time 1505 GMT Ysi sal 0.1 Ysi temp 19.0 Water depth 19'-6" Sensor tube - very clean Date 4/13/04 Time 1330 GMT Ysi sal 1.8 Ysi temp 21.7 Water depth 18'-10" Sensor tube -very clean Date 4/26/04 Time 1316 Ysi Sal 0.2 Ysi Temp 24.6 Depth 18'-0"7" Cond sensor tube very clean Date 5/10/04 Time 1404 Ysi sal 0.3 Ysi temp 25.6 Depth 17'-10"" Cond sensor tube very clean Instrument deployment, maintenance and retrieval observations: S/N 1796 SITE 8 Set up by K. Helm Time on 05/25/04 2000 GMT Time into water 05/25/04 1651 GMT Time out of water 08/25/04 1506 GMT Time off 08/25/04 1643 GMT Sample Interval 1800sec. Deployment Information Date 5/25/04 Time 1651 GMT YSI sal 8.9 Ysi temp 28.6 Water depth 23'-11” Sensor height above bottom 15'-1” Retrieval Information Date 08/25/04 Time 1506 GMT YSI sal 0.3 Ysi temp 29.1 Water depth 18’-4” Instrument condition Sensor tube – very clean Upload file name 08040896 Maintenance Record Date 06/12/04 Time 1513 GMT Ysi sal 4.1 Ysi temp 29.4 Water depth - 16'-11” Sensor tube – very clean Date 06/28/04 Time 1515 GMT Ysi sal 0.7 Ysi temp 29.7 Water depth 18'-10” sensor tube – very clean Date 07/14/04 Time 1227 GMT Ysi sal 2.6 Ysi temp 29.9 Water depth 21'-9" Sensor tube – very clean Date 07/26/04 Time 1458 GMT Ysi sal 0.6 Ysi temp 30.7 Water depth 20'-1" Sensor tube –very clean Date 8/10/04 Time 1654 Ysi Sal 1.1 Ysi Temp 28.8 Depth 18'-7" Cond - sensor tube very clean Date Time Ysi sal Ysi temp Depth Cond Instrument deployment, maintenance and retrieval observations: S/N 2539 SITE 8 Set up by K. Helm Time on 8/25/04 2000GMT Time into water 08/25/04 1506 GMT Time out of water 11/30/04 1822 GMT Time off 11/30/04 2026 GMT Sample Interval 1800sec. Deployment Information Date 8/25/04 Time 1506 GMT YSI sal 0.3 Ysi temp 29.1 Water depth 18'-4” Sensor height above bottom 15'-1” Retrieval Information Date 11/30/04 Time 1822 GMT YSI sal 1.5 Ysi temp 12.5 Water depth 22'-0” Instrument condition Sensor tube – very clean Upload file name 08041139 Maintenance Record Date 09/9/04 Time 1648 GMT Ysi sal 0.2 Ysi temp 28.1 Water depth - 17'-11” Sensor tube – very clean Date 09/22/04 Time 1411 GMT Ysi sal 0.1 Ysi temp 23.2 Water depth 20'-0” sensor tube – very clean Date 10/7/04 Time 1218 GMT Ysi sal 0.0 Ysi temp 23.7 Water depth 20'-10 Sensor tube – very clean Date 10/18/04 Time 1422 GMT Ysi sal 0.1 Ysi temp 20.6 Water depth 22'-11 Sensor tube – very clean Date 11/2/04 Time 1712 Ysi Sal 1.2 Ysi Temp 24.0 Depth 23'-5 Cond sensor tube very clean Date 11/16/04 Time 1304 Ysi sal 0.4 Ysi temp 15.8 Depth 21'-4 Cond - very clean Instrument deployment, maintenance and retrieval observations: S/N 1794 SITE 08 Set up by K. Helm Time on 11/30/04 2000 GMT Time into water 11/30/04 1822 GMT Time out of water 02/24/05 1519 GMT Time off 02/24/05 1651 GMT Sample Interval 1800sec. Deployment Information Date 11/30/04 Time 1822GMT YSI sal 1.5 Ysi temp 17.5 Water depth 22'-0” Sensor height above bottom 15'-1" Retrieval Information Date 02/24/05 Time 1519 GMT YSI sal 0.8 Ysi temp 16.9 Water depth 24'-0” Instrument condition Sensor tube – very clean Upload file name 08050294 Maintenance Record Date 12/17/04 Time 1525 GMT Ysi sal 0.1 Ysi temp 10.4 Water depth - 22'-7” Sensor tube – very clean Date 01/04/05 Time 1701 GMT Ysi sal 0.1 Ysi temp 13.7 Water depth 21'-6” sensor tube – very clean Date 01/18/05 Time 1527 GMT Ysi sal 0.3 Ysi temp 11.1 Water depth 20’-0 Sensor tube – very clean Date 01/31/05 Time 1421 GMT Ysi sal 0.2 Ysi temp 8.6 Water depth 22'-10" Sensor tube – very clean Date 02/16/05 Time 1424 Ysi Sal 0.1 Ysi Temp 13.8 Depth 18'-1" Sensor tube -very clean Date Time Ysi sal Ysi temp Depth Cond 4. Questions and Comments from Users: none