The Catalina Conservancy Divers is a support group of the Santa Catalina Island Conservancy, a private, non-profit conservation organization dedicated to the preservation of the natural heritage of Santa Catalina Island. Personnel of this group in conjunction with the Wrigley Marine Science Center maintain a Ryan thermograph in Isthmus Cove, just outside the mouth of Fisherman Cove, on the northeast side of the island. The data presented here are the daily means of these subsurface (4 M) temperatures recorded every 30 minutes. Historically, temperature readings at Santa Catalina Island were measured manually in the surface waters at Isthmus Cove (1955-56, 1970-85) and Avalon Bay (1955-56, 1963-67). These measurements are therefore not comparable to the thermister data recorded at its current depth and location at the mouth of Fisherman Cove (1991-96).

This tide-gauge station is located at the end of Santa Monica Pier near the harbormaster's office. Although located behind the breakwater, there is sufficient water flow to be representative of the nearshore waters. The new automated temperature system, which records one reading each hour, became fully operational in September of 1993 and manual data collection was subsequently discontinued more than a year later. To be comparative with the other shore stations providing a single daily reading, these hourly values were averaged over the 24-hour period into one daily mean temperature. Analysis of the overlapping data shows that this value is about 0.2°C cooler than the historical data set.

This tide gauge station is located on the old fishing pier in the northwest corner of the harbor. Moved from the previous site on Avila recreational pier in 1972, the present location is less subject to storm damage. Temperature is about 0.1°C warmer at the new site. The new automated temperature system, which records one reading each hour, became fully operational in September of 1993 and manual data collection was subsequently discontinued several months later. To be comparative with the other shore stations providing a single daily reading, these hourly values were averaged over the 24-hour period into one daily mean temperature. Analysis shows that this value is somewhat cooler than the historical data set.

Encompassing approximately 2300 acres, Morro Bay consists primarily of intertidal mud flats traversed by a navigable channel 4 to 7.5 M deep, which runs from the entrance in southern Estero Bay to White Point. As a part of daily operations, Morro Bay power plant personnel record the temperature of the generator cooling water at the intake structure, which is located near the entrance at the northern end of the bay and draws waters from 6.3 M below mean sea level. The data sent to Scripps reflected the 0800 temperature until 1987, at which time the 0200, 1000 and 1800 hour readings were combined into a daily average (see appendices). Due to the shallow nature of the bay, this data was strongly affected by the warmer back bay waters drawn into the intake during outgoing tides. In 1995, the decision was made by plant personnel to use only the coldest water temperature of the day. It is believed that this change will provide data that is more reflective of true oceanic conditions. However, this cold water data (included in all the long-term calculations for means, anomalies and harmonic curve coefficients), can average a degree or more cooler than the historical record.

Each morning at the Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf, temperatures are read on a buoy-gauge thermistor unit installed and maintained in a protective pipe on a pier piling 5.2 M below average tide.

In the latter part of 1989, the Marine Biological Laboratory located at Horseshoe Cove switched from manual sampling to an automated meteorological and oceanographic monitoring system. Installed at the same site, this system records temperature and salinity at the aquarium's water system intake located in a deep rocky channel on the northern headland of the cove. The manual and automated data sets overlapped in 1990 with good agreement, so the manual collections of samples subsequently ceased in 1991. The temperature and salinity values presented are, for the most part, the 0815 data point, and since the water is deep and the headland steep and rocky, these values are representative of the coastal water.

This tide gauge station is located on the end of the Coast Guard Pier in Crescent City harbor. Temperatures at this site inside the harbor and the water on the beach outside the small entrance formed by two breakwaters, are nearly the same. The new automated temperature system, which records one reading each hour, became fully operational in September of 1993 and manual data collection was discontinued more than a year later. To be comparative with the other shore stations providing a single daily reading, these hourly values were averaged over the 24-hour period into one daily mean temperature. Analysis of the overlapping data shows that this value can be nearly 1°C cooler than the historical data set.

Coos Bay, the second largest bay on the Oregon coast, encompasses over 12,000 acres, which are divided almost evenly between tidelands and submerged lands. The OIMB pier is located less than a mile from the mouth of the bay, which is protected by jetties to both the north and the south. The bay itself is comprised of eleven tidal inlets, including the South Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve, a significant source of freshwater runoff, less than a mile above the pier. Because of this, personnel collect daily temperatures at high tide in order to minimize the effects of the estuarine environment.

This tide gauge station is located near Cape Flattery at the entrance to the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The new automated temperature system, which records one reading each hour, became fully operational in March of 1994 and manual data collection was discontinued less than one year later. To be comparative with the other shore stations providing a single daily reading, these hourly values were averaged over the 24-hour period into one daily mean temperature. Analysis of the overlapping data shows that this value can be more than 1°C cooler than the historical data set.