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Dataset Overview | National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI)

The NGDC Seafloor Sediment Grain Size Database

browse graphicimage of a placer deposit
The NGDC (now NCEI) Seafloor Sediment Grain Size Database contains particle size data for over 17,000 seafloor samples worldwide. The file was begun by NGDC in 1976 in response to a need by the Outer Continental Shelf Environmental Assessment Program (OCSEAP) for a detailed, digital file of textural analyses. Data are from OCSEAP studies, academic institutions, environmental baseline studies conducted under contract to the Bureau of Land Management under the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Program, and from laboratory reports generated by the U.S. Naval Oceanographic Office. Data include collecting institution, ship, cruise, sample id, latitude/longitude, date of collection, water depth, sampling device, method of analysis, sample weight, sampled interval, raw weight percentages of sediment, within a given phi range. Some samples also have percentages of total gravel, sand, silt, clay, and statistical measurements such as mean, median, skewness, kurtosis, and standard deviation of grain size.
  • Cite as: National Geophysical Data Center. 1976: The NGDC Seafloor Sediment Grain Size Database. First Version. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. https://doi.org/10.7289/V5G44N6W. Accessed [date].
gov.noaa.ngdc.mgg.geology:G00127
Full Text · XML
Search Data
Download Data
  • Data files and documentation (download)
    Download entire data set as delimited ASCII text (no search/subset), one file each for cruise, sample, interval, and phi-level information.
Distribution Formats
  • Text (Version: UTF-8)
    • File Specification: American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) text format.
  • tar.gz (Version: unknown)
    • File Specification: compressed Tape ARchive file
Ordering Instructions Contact NCEI for other distribution options and instructions.
Distributor NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
ncei.info@noaa.gov
Dataset Point of Contact NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
ncei.info@noaa.gov
Dataset Point of Contact Marine Geology Data Manager
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
geology.info@noaa.gov
Coverage Description Global Ocean
Time Period 1956-01-01 to 2000-12-31
Spatial Reference System urn:ogc:def:crs:EPSG:4326
Spatial Bounding Box Coordinates
West: -180
East: 180
South: -78.3667
North: 81.0705
Spatial Coverage Map
General Documentation
  • Metadata Landing Page
    How to cite this data set (doi:10.7289/V5G44N6W), all access options, and complete documentation.
Associated Resources
  • NCEI Marine Geology Inventory
    • NCEI Marine Geology Inventory (search)
      Text interface to discover data sets containing grain size analyses in the original 073 format archived by NCEI, and also grain size data not in the 073 format/grain size database.
  • The NGDC Seafloor Sediment Geotechnical Properties Database
  • NCEI Marine Geology Data Archive
    • Parent Archive
      Information about the Marine Geology Data Archive at NCEI.
  • NOAA/NCEI Marine Geology WAF
Publication Dates
  • publication: 1976-12-31
  • revision: 2000-12-31
Edition First Version
Data Presentation Form Digital table - digital representation of facts or figures systematically displayed, especially in columns
Dataset Progress Status Complete - production of the data has been completed
Historical archive - data has been stored in an offline storage facility
Data Update Frequency Not planned - Although no updates are planned, project-specific updates are possible if resources become available.
Supplemental Information
Quality control: Missing data or gross percentage errors are noted. Processing: Data sources include contractors for the Outer Continental Shelf Environmental Assessment Program; contractors for the Outer Continental Shelf Office, Bureau of Land Management; and project managers from academic institutions.
Purpose environmental research
Use Limitations
  • Produced by the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Not subject to copyright protection within the United States.
Dataset Citation
  • Cite as: National Geophysical Data Center. 1976: The NGDC Seafloor Sediment Grain Size Database. First Version. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. https://doi.org/10.7289/V5G44N6W. Accessed [date].
Cited Authors
  • National Geophysical Data Center
Publishers
  • NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
Acknowledgments
  • US Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), NOAA Satellite and Information Service (NESDIS), National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), and World Data Service for Geophysics, Boulder.
Theme keywords Library of Congress Subject Headings
  • Scientific archives
  • Electronic records
  • Oceanography
  • Ocean bottom
  • Geology
  • Submarine geology
  • Marine sediments
SeaDataNet Common Vocabularies
  • Marine geology
USGS Science Topics
  • Sea-floor characteristics
Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Science Keywords
  • Earth Science > Oceans > Marine Sediments
  • Earth Science > Paleoclimate > Ocean/Lake Records > Sediments
  • Earth Science > Oceans > Marine Sediments > Sedimentary Textures
  • Earth Science > Oceans > Marine Environment Monitoring
CIESIN Keyword Thesaurus
  • CIESIN > Environmental Protection > Environmental Monitoring
Data Center keywords Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Data Center Keywords
  • DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/NCEI > National Centers for Environmental Information, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
  • DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/NGDC > National Geophysical Data Center, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
Platform keywords Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Platform Keywords
  • In Situ Ocean-based Platforms > Ships
Instrument keywords Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Instrument Keywords
  • In Situ/Laboratory Instruments > Corers > Coring Devices
  • In Situ/Laboratory Instruments > Samplers > Grabbers/Traps/Collectors > Grab Samplers
  • In Situ/Laboratory Instruments > Corers > Sediment Corers
Place keywords Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Location Keywords
  • Geographic Region > Global Ocean
  • Vertical Location >Sea Floor
Project keywords Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Project Keywords
  • OCS > Outer Continental Shelf Program
  • OCSEAP > Outer Continental Shelf Environmental Assessment Project
  • ICSU-WDS > International Council for Science - World Data System
Use Constraints
  • Use liability: NOAA and NCEI cannot provide any warranty as to the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of furnished data. Users assume responsibility to determine the usability of these data. The user is responsible for the results of any application of this data for other than its intended purpose.
  • While every effort has been made to ensure that these data are accurate and reliable within the limits of the current state of the art, NOAA cannot assume liability for any damages caused by any errors or omissions in the data, nor as a result of the failure of the data to function on a particular system. NOAA makes no warranty, expressed or implied, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty.
Access Constraints
  • Distribution liability: NOAA and NCEI make no warranty, expressed or implied, regarding these data, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty. NOAA and NCEI cannot assume liability for any damages caused by any errors or omissions in these data. If appropriate, NCEI can only certify that the data it distributes are an authentic copy of the records that were accepted for inclusion in the NCEI archives.
  • Access to this dataset is unrestricted.
Other Constraints Cite as: National Geophysical Data Center. 1976: The NGDC Seafloor Sediment Grain Size Database. First Version. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. https://doi.org/10.7289/V5G44N6W. Accessed [date].
Fees
  • In most cases, electronic downloads of the data are free. However, fees may apply for custom orders, data certifications, copies of analog materials, and data distribution on physical media.
Lineage information for: dataset
Lineage Statement Lineage varies by data source. Most data were contributed originally to NOAA's former National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) as part of larger environmental studies. NODC forwarded the grain size portion of these studies to NGDC for distribution and archive, and in many cases maintained a copy for the NODC archive. Relatively few data sets were contributed directly to the former National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC). Some data were coded by NGDC from paper reports, especially unpublished laboratory item reports from the U.S. Naval Oceanographic Office (NAVOCEANO). Some data were translated from other formats, including the historic 003 Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) format, and the University of Washington format.
Processing Environment Native Dataset Environment: ASCII text
Source Datasets
Lineage information for: repository
Processing Steps
  • 2015-04-22T00:00:00 - NOAA created the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) by merging NOAA's National Climatic Data Center (NCDC), National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC), and National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC), including the National Coastal Data Development Center (NCDDC), per the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015, Public Law 113-235. NCEI launched publicly on April 22, 2015.
Acquisition Information (collection)
Instrument
  • In Situ/Laboratory Instruments
Platform
  • In Situ Ocean-based Platforms > SHIPS
Last Modified: 2020-04-21
For questions about the information on this page, please email: ncei.info@noaa.gov