Mediterranean Quality checked BGC-Argo 2013-2022 dataset

BGC Argo profiles were downloaded from the Coriolis GDAC (Argo, 2022; last visited July 2022). We collected both AM and DM synthetic profiles and selected data labelled as good, probably good, changed, and interpolated (quality check - QC - flags 1, 2, 5, and 8).

Moreover, if the vertical resolution of the profiles exceeded 2m, the data were averaged to 2m resolution. Finally, a moving weighted average was calculated to remove eventual small fluctuations in the data profiles. This moving average takes into account the 2 upper and 2 lower neighbouring points and a Gaussian function of the distance to the central point for the weights.

Specific quality check procedures were applied to the variables based on our knowledge and use of BGC-Argo data in the Mediterranean Sea. For chlorophyll, the profiles were shifted to have a value of 0 at 400-600 m (Cossarini et al., 2019; Teruzzi et al., 2021); for oxygen a check for anomalous drifts at depth was computed (Amadio et al., 2024); and for nitrate negative surface values were replaced by 0.05 mmol/m3 (Teruzzi et al., 2021).  The Python package “Bit.Sea” (/Float), available at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8283692 (Bolzon et al., 2023), was used for the quality check.

The dataset is used in the Mediterranean Biogeochemical Center of the Copernicus Marine Service (Coppini et al., 2023) for assimilation and validation (Amadio et al., 2024), and  neural network application (Pietropolli et al., 2023).