Argo Data Access

Data Availability: Data are available online by Global Data Assembly Centers (GDACs) in Brest, France and Monterey, California after an automated quality control (QC), and in scientifically quality controlled form, delayed mode data, via the GDACs within six months of collection.

Access the Databases

• Data are available from 2 Global Argo Data Centers (GDACs). Both GDAC provide the same data.
  • USGODAE (Monterey, California): Access to the complete Argo data collection, including float metadata, detailed trajectory data, and geographic and float specific Multi-Profile collection is provided via a DODs LAS, HTTP and FTP.
    The available selection and display tools are:
    • A profile location plot for all profiles returned by the query (may be plotted with or without float ID for queries returning many profiles)
    • Download of selected profiles (in NetCDF Multi-Profile format) as a TAR file
    • Plots of T-P and S-P for individual profiles
    • Plots of float tracks for individual floats

  | Access Argo data at USGODAE |

  • Coriolis Operational Oceanography (Brest, France): Access to the complete Argo data collection, including float metadata, detailed trajectory data, and geographic and float-specific multi-profile collections is provided via a Distributed Oceanographic Data System Live Access Server (DODS LAS), HTTP and FTP. All float profiles can be visualized using a GIS tool.
    A subsetting tool allows selection by:
    • profile type
    • time and lat/long windows,
    • measured parameter
    • platform type
    • real-time or delayed mode QC data

    | Access Argo data at Coriolis |

• Argo Data access from Argo.net

Argo Regional Centers (ARCs)

Argo is establishing a number of regional centers. Some centers provide data for their individual regions.

• Pacific ARC
  | Access Pacifc ARC Data Products |

• North Atlantic ARC
  No data are available at this time.

• South Atlantic ARC
  | Access South Atlantic ARC Data |

• Indian ARC
  | Access Indian ARC Data Products |

• Southern Ocean ARC
  | Browse Southern Ocean ARC Data Products |

Data Collection

Argo collects salinity/temperature profiles from a sparse (average 3° x 3° spacing) array of robotic floats that populate the ice-free oceans that are deeper than about 2000m. They also give information on the surface and subsurface currents. Each profile is made up of about 200 data points. The first Argo floats were deployed in 2000 and the array will be complete in 2007. Argo data are made available to users quickly and free of restriction.

Data are available at the GDACs in two versions:

• Fast mode data has been subjected to initial quality control at national Data Assembly Centers (DACs). These data should be free from gross errors in position, temperature and pressure. The uncalibrated salinity data values are available and where a salinity offset is known it may appear as an "Adjusted salinity" variable in the same file on GDAC FTP servers. These data are identified with R in the "Data stream" variable if no adjustments were made and are identified with A if an adjustment was made. These files are available on the GDAC FTP sites. In general, these data should be consistent with ocean climatology even though no climatology tests have been performed.
• Delayed mode: These data profiles have been subjected to detailed scrutiny by oceanographic experts and the adjusted salinity has been estimated by comparison with high quality ship-based CTD data and climatology. This process is carried out on a 1 year long "data window" and so no "Delayed Mode" observations can be less than 1 year old.