Suspended sediment concentrations from water samples collected in South San Francisco Bay, California, and adjacent tidal creeks, Summer 2021

Metadata also available as - [Outline] - [Parseable text] - [XML]

Frequently anticipated questions:

What does this data set describe?

Title:
Suspended sediment concentrations from water samples collected in South San Francisco Bay, California, and adjacent tidal creeks, Summer 2021
Abstract:
Water samples were collected in South San Francisco Bay and Whale's Tail South marsh tidal creeks from June 2021 through September 2021. The water samples were collected near pre-established USGS instrument moorings with a peristaltic pump, via a Niskin bottle, or directly with a sample bottle to analyze for suspended sediment concentration.
Supplemental_Information:
Information about the data collection field activities can be found at: https://cmgds.marine.usgs.gov/fan_info.php?fan=2021-627-FA
Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.
  1. How might this data set be cited?
    McGill, Samantha C., Ferreira, Joanne C.T., and Tan, Angela C., 20230412, Suspended sediment concentrations from water samples collected in South San Francisco Bay, California, and adjacent tidal creeks, Summer 2021: data release doi:10.5066/P972R6AW, U.S. Geological Survey, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Santa Cruz, California.

    Online Links:

    This is part of the following larger work.

    Ferreira, Joanne C.T., Lacy, Jessica R., McGill, Samantha C., WinklerPrins, Lukas T., Nowacki, Daniel J., Stevens, Andrew W., and Tan, Angela C., 2023, Hydrodynamic and sediment transport data from Whale's Tail South marsh and adjacent waters in South San Francisco Bay, California 2021-2022: data release doi:10.5066/P972R6AW, U.S. Geological Survey, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Santa Cruz, California.

    Online Links:

  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?
    West_Bounding_Coordinate: -122.17179
    East_Bounding_Coordinate: -122.14134
    North_Bounding_Coordinate: 37.58644
    South_Bounding_Coordinate: 37.58159
  3. What does it look like?
  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?
    Beginning_Date: 04-Jun-2021
    Ending_Date: 07-Sep-2021
    Currentness_Reference:
    ground condition
  5. What is the general form of this data set?
    Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: Comma-separated values
  6. How does the data set represent geographic features?
    1. How are geographic features stored in the data set?
      Indirect_Spatial_Reference: Data were collected in South San Francisco Bay, California
      This is a Point data set. It contains the following vector data types (SDTS terminology):
      • Point (176)
    2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?
      Horizontal positions are specified in geographic coordinates, that is, latitude and longitude. Latitudes are given to the nearest 1.0E-5. Longitudes are given to the nearest 1.0E-5. Latitude and longitude values are specified in Decimal degrees. The horizontal datum used is World Geodetic System 1984 (WGS84).
      The ellipsoid used is WGS84.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378137.0.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/298.257223563.
  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?
    WTS21_SSC_water_sample_data.csv
    Table containing attribute information associated with the dataset (Source: Producer defined)
    FAN ID
    U.S. Geological Survey field activity number (FAN). (Source: Producer defined)
    ValueDefinition
    2021-627-FASamples collected during USGS field activity 2021-627-FA. Additional information about this field activity can be found at https://cmgds.marine.usgs.gov/fan_info.php?fan=2021-627-FA
    Lab ID
    Sample identifier for sediment lab in XYY format where X identifies the data series and YY indicates the number in the series. Identical Lab IDs indicates duplicate samples processed by the sediment lab. (Source: Producer defined) Unique identifier for samples; assigned in the sediment lab.
    Date Collected
    Date in month/day/year format of sample collection. (Source: Producer defined)
    Range of values
    Minimum:06/04/2021
    Maximum:09/07/2021
    Units:Date in month/day/year format
    Time (UTC)
    Time of sample collection, in hours:minutes:seconds format, Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) (Source: Producer defined)
    Range of values
    Minimum:00:00:00
    Maximum:23:59:59
    Units:hours:minutes:seconds format, Coordinated Universal Time (UTC)
    Water column location
    The depth relative to the air-water interface or elevation above the bed from which the sample was collected. (Source: Producer defined) Values indicating sampling locations within the water column. Values followed by "cmbs" were collected in centimeters below the surface of the water. Values followed by “cmab” were collected in centimeters above the bed. “Surface” indicates a position in the water column close to the air-water interface where specific depth was not recorded.
    Latitude
    Latitude of sample location in decimal degrees, north. (Source: Producer defined)
    Range of values
    Minimum:37.58159
    Maximum:37.5864
    Units:Decimal degrees
    Longitude
    Longitude of sample location in decimal degrees, east. (Source: Producer defined)
    Range of values
    Minimum:-122.17179
    Maximum:-122.14134
    Units:Decimal degrees
    Method
    Method of sample collection (Source: Producer defined)
    ValueDefinition
    pumpedSamples were collected using a peristaltic pump
    NiskinSamples were collected using a Niskin bottle
    grabSamples were collected using a sample bottle
    Total Depth (m)
    Water depth at time of sampling. "NA" indicates depth was not recorded. (Source: Producer defined)
    Range of values
    Minimum:0.45
    Maximum:7.00
    Units:meters
    Sample Notes
    Relevant information regarding the sample during its collection or processing. "NA" indicates no sample notes were taken. (Source: Producer defined) Unique note of relevant information regarding sample
    Aliquit Volume mL
    The volume of sample used for the analysis. (Source: producer defined)
    Range of values
    Minimum:41.0
    Maximum:461.0
    Units:milliliters
    Wt. Sediment mg
    The weight of the sediment. (Source: producer defined)
    Range of values
    Minimum:1.7
    Maximum:46.6
    Units:milligrams
    Suspended Sediment Concentration mg/L
    The suspended sediment concentration from the sample. (Source: producer defined)
    Range of values
    Minimum:4.92
    Maximum:541.43
    Units:milligram per liter

Who produced the data set?

  1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)
    • Samantha C. McGill
    • Joanne C.T. Ferreira
    • Angela C. Tan
  2. Who also contributed to the data set?
  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
    U.S. Geological Survey, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center
    Attn: PCMSC Science Data Coordinator
    2885 Mission Street
    Santa Cruz, CA

    831-460-4747 (voice)
    pcmsc_data@usgs.gov

Why was the data set created?

These data were collected to calibrate turbidity data from optical backscatter sensors to suspended-sediment concentration. They were collected as part of a study to quantify sediment fluxes and changes in marsh morphology at Whale's Tail marsh in southern San Francisco Bay. These data are intended for researchers, students, policy makers, and the general public.

How was the data set created?

  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?
  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?
    Date: 07-Sep-2021 (process 1 of 3)
    Water samples were collected periodically between June and September 2021 using a peristaltic pump, Niskin bottle, or sample bottle. Sampling positions were recorded using a hand-held global navigation satellite system (GNSS) receiver. Samples were placed in cold storage until processed.
    Date: 24-Oct-2021 (process 2 of 3)
    The suspended sediment concentrations of the samples were determined in the USGS Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center sediment lab. Suspended sediment concentrations were determined by a filtering a known volume of sample through a pre-weighed filter, which is then dried and reweighed to determine the mass of suspended sediment on the filter.
    Date: 24-Oct-2021 (process 3 of 3)
    Suspended sediment concentrations were calculated by subtracting the weight of the filter from the weight of the reweight (post filtering) filter. The resulting weight (in milligrams) is divided by the volume of sample filtered (in liters) to get the concentration of suspended sediments.
  3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?

How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?

  1. How well have the observations been checked?
    Data values are within the expected values, and have been used calibrate coincident turbidity measurements in file Regression_constants_for_converting_turbidity_to_SSC(mg_per_L).csv.
  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?
    Horizontal accuracy derived from GPS instrumentation is less than 5 m.
  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?
    No formal positional accuracy tests were conducted. Pumped samples were collected with the appeture at a fixed height on the sampling frame either resting on the seabed or suspended from the vessel. Grab sample position is less accurate as the larger diameter of a sample bottle is involved.
  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?
    Dataset is considered complete for the information presented, as described in the abstract. Users are advised to read the rest of the metadata record carefully for additional details. Specific field notes were retained in the file to support further use of the data.
  5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?
    Data values are within the expected values for suspended sediment in bay and tidal environments..

How can someone get a copy of the data set?

Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?
Access_Constraints None
Use_Constraints USGS-authored or produced data and information are in the public domain from the U.S. Government and are freely redistributable with proper metadata and source attribution. Please recognize and acknowledge the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) as the originator of the dataset and in products derived from these data.
  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)
    U.S. Geological Survey - CMGDS
    2885 Mission Street
    Santa Cruz, CA

    831-427-4747 (voice)
    pcmsc_data@usgs.gov
  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set? These data are available in csv format (WTS21_SSC_water_sample_data.csv) accompanied by CSDGM FGDC-compliant metadata.
  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?
    Unless otherwise stated, all data, metadata and related materials are considered to satisfy the quality standards relative to the purpose for which the data were collected. Although these data and associated metadata have been reviewed for accuracy and completeness and approved for release by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), no warranty expressed or implied is made regarding the display or utility of the data on any other system or for general or scientific purposes, nor shall the act of distribution constitute any such warranty.
  4. How can I download or order the data?
    • Availability in digital form:
      Data format: file contains the csv table in format comma-delimited text (version Microsoft Excel 2002 (12527.20988) 64-bit) Size: 0.018
      Network links: https://doi.org/10.5066/P972R6AW
    • Cost to order the data: None.

  5. What hardware or software do I need in order to use the data set?
    The data is available in comma-separated values (CSV) spreadsheet format. Text editing software can be used to open the file, as well as spreadsheet programs, such as Microsoft Excel.

Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:
Last modified: 19-Apr-2023
Metadata author:
PCMSC Science Data Coordinator
U.S. Geological Survey, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center
2885 Mission Street
Santa Cruz, CA
United States

831-427-4747 (voice)
pcmsc_data@usgs.gov
Metadata standard:
Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)
This page is <https://cmgds.marine.usgs.gov/catalog/pcmsc/DataReleases/CMGDS_DR_tool/DR_P972R6AW/WTS21_SSC_metadata.faq.html>
Generated by mp version 2.9.51 on Fri Apr 28 10:32:11 2023