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Are you looking for recent monthly buoy data online?, or real-time observations from the National Data Buoy Center?

Introduction to NODC's Buoy CD-ROMs

The National Oceanographic Data Center has announced the release of a seven disc CD-ROM set containing 16.5 gigabytes of coastal buoy data. This set contains historical data through December 1997 with online Internet links to updated data and information, real-time data, and time series plots available on the NODC website.

CD-ROM Contents

This is an Internet/CD-ROM hybrid set that can be viewed using your Internet browser. The data was compressed using the UNIX compress command, and your Internet browser (with the proper plug-in) can decompress the data files right to your screen. Decompression software is also included on the discs. There are Internet links to updated data and contact information, as well as buoy payloads and sensor information on the CD-ROMs. Each CD-ROM contains an inventory for all buoys, however the actual historical data is divided geographically between seven separate discs. To order one CD-ROM or the whole set please see the NODC User Services contact information below. The NODC online buoy website can be reached at http://www.nodc.noaa.gov/BUOY/buoy.html. This website contains all available buoy data free of charge. If you want to order the CD-ROMs, please go to the buoy CD-ROM section of the online store.

The CD-ROMs contain meteorological and oceanographic data collected by moored buoys and C-MAN (Coastal-Marine Automated Network) stations operated by the NOAA National Data Buoy Center (NDBC). C-MAN stations are located on piers, offshore towers, lighthouses, and beaches with excellent exposure to the marine environment. The observations are transmitted, typically once each hour, through GOES (Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite) to the National Weather Service Telecommunications Gateway, where the data are placed in meteorological codes for real-time transmission. After post-processing and quality control of the GOES messages, NDBC submits these data each month to the NOAA National Oceanographic Data Center for permanent storage in NODC's F291 format. These CD-ROM data are more complete and have undergone more quality control than the data transmitted in real-time. The real-time data for these stations can be obtained online from the National Data Buoy Center at www.ndbc.noaa.gov.

History of the NOAA Marine Environmental Buoy Database

The earliest buoy data archived at NODC is from the early 1970's, and the NODC archive of C-MAN data begins in 1985. The geographic areas included on the CD-ROMs are the U.S. East Coast, West Coast, Gulf Coast, Great Lakes, Gulf of Alaska, Bering Sea, Western Pacific, and offshore Hawaii.

Station identifier, position, date, time, sampling duration, and sampling rate are reported for each series of measurements. Principal parameters reported by both moored buoys and C-MAN stations include air temperature and pressure, wind speed and direction, wind gust, and sea surface temperature. Some buoys (and a few C-MAN stations located on offshore platforms) also report wave data which usually includes wave height, wave period, and wave spectra.

How to Order

To place an order online for any NODC CD-ROMs using VISA, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover, please visit the NOAA National Data Centers' Online Store.
If you want to order the Buoy CD-ROMs, please go to the buoy CD-ROM section of the online store.

- or contact NODC User Services