GC-MS characterization of marine sediment cores collected onboard R/V Weatherbird II cruise WB-0814 in the northern Gulf of Mexico from 2014-08-17 to 2014-08-26

This dataset reports selected biomarker ratios in marine sediment cores using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Sediment cores were collected onboard R/V Weatherbird II cruise WB-0814 in the northern Gulf of Mexico from 2014-08-17 to 2014-08-26. Marine cores were sectioned at specific intervals, and freeze-dried. Hydrocarbons were extracted from freeze-dried samples using a dichloromethane/methanol (9:1) mixture of solvents and extracts were analyzed using an Agilent 7890B gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) instrument attached to a 5977A mass detector. Data was used to prepare elected biomarker ratios in sediment cores from sampling sites in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Chief scientists for this cruise were Dr. Steve Murawski and Dr. David Hollander, and the objective was to create Gulf-wide baselines for sediment and fish.