Mechanisms Controlling Hypoxia Data Atlas: High-resolution hydrographic and chemical observations from 2003-2014

The Mechanisms Controlling Hypoxia (MCH) project consisted of 31 cruises from 2003-2014 with an objective to investigate the physical and biogeochemical processes that control the hypoxic zone on the Texas-Louisiana shelf in the northern Gulf of Mexico. The known seasonal low oxygen conditions in this region are the result of river-derived nutrients, freshwater input, and wind. The MCH Data Atlas showcases in situ data and subsequent products produced during the duration of the project, focusing on oceanographic observations from 2010-2014. The Atlas features 230 high-resolution vertical sections from nine cruises using the Acrobat undulating towed vehicle that contained a CTD along with sensors measuring oxygen, fluorescence, and turbidity. Vertical profiles along the 20-meter isobaths section feature temperature, salinity, chlorophyll, and dissolved oxygen from the Acrobat towfish and CTD rosette as well as separate selected profiles from the CTD. Surface planview maps show the horizontal distribution of temperature, salinity, chlorophyll, beam transmission, and CDOM observed by the shipboard flow-through system. Bottom planview maps present the horizontal distribution of dissolved oxygen as well as temperature and salinity from the CTD rosette and Acrobat towfish along the shelf’s seafloor. Informational basemaps display the GPS cruise track as well as individual CTD stations for each cruise. The shelf concentrations of CTD rosette bottle nutrients, including nitrate, nitrite, phosphate, ammonia, and silicate are displayed in select plots. Shipboard ADCP current velocity fields are also represented. MCH datasets and additional products are featured as an electronic version to compliment the published atlas. The MCH Data Atlas provides a showcase for the spatial and temporal variability of the environmental parameters associated with the annual hypoxic event and will be a useful tool in the continued monitoring and assessment of Gulf coastal hypoxia.