Samples collected by rosette or hand-deployed niskin, directly transferred into acid-washed and backed glass vials with teflon-lined silicone septa caps, and frozen at -20 or -80 C. Analyses conducted by high-temperature catalytic combustion and calibrated again standards provided by the University of Miami. In 2002, all samples were total organic carbon (TOC), and in 2003-04, all samples were dissolved organc carbon (DOC, filtered through combusted GFF), and TOC was also collected at full stations at in surface waters at the overwintering site.

The iBO project has supported the deployment of four moorings at key locations identified during the previous northern and southern Beaufort Sea monitoring initiatives (see CCIN 11925 ArcticNet-Industry 2009-2011 moorings and CCIN 11975 BREA 2011-2015 moorings). Since fall 2015, BRG and BR1 from BREA were redeployed along with two new moorings BRK and BR3. For every year of deployment, each mooring line was equipped with various oceanographic instruments attached at different depths from approximately 150 m to 750 m. Moored instruments include conductivity-temperature sensors, ice profiling sonars, particle analyzers, current meters, current profilers, and sediment traps. Datasets include currents, ice draft and velocities, water levels, temperature, salinity and turbidity, chlorophyll, suspended particulate size and concentration, and vertical carbon flux. Data collected were quality assessed/quality controlled (QA/QC) following the Climate and Forecast (CF http://cfconventions.org/) conventions, and building upon the open-source Integrated Marine Observatory System (IMOS) toolbox developed for Matlab© by the Australian Ocean Data Network (AODN). The four moorings provided ready to use quality data for the period 2015-2017. BR1 provided an extra year of data for 2017-2018, whereas BR3, BRG, and BRK are still at sea and being recovered (Fall 2019). The program ended officially in 2018; however, Amundsen Science and its collaborators maintain the observatory and monitoring capacity in the region with one mooring BRG pending new funding and interests for the program.

Sponges were sampled from multiple sites in the Northeast Atlantic from multiple cruises aboard the CCGS Amundsen. Benthic sponges were obtained through Box cores, Agassiz trawls, and through targeted sampling using the SuMO ROV. Sponges were photographed on board and in-situ when possible (using ROV camera). Collected sponges were retained for taxonomic analysis. Whole or portions of each collected sponge were preserved in 96% ethanol to prevent DNA degradation. Larger sponge fragments were frozen on board. Collected sponges are to be subsampled for morphology-based taxonomy (analysis of spicule structure and body form), and for molecular taxonomy through extraction and amplification of cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) mitochondrial DNA fragments for DNA barcoding. In total, 112 separate sponges were sampled during the 2015/2016 leg from depths ranging between 80-1148 metres and encompassing latitudes 60°18N to 68°15N. 31 specimens were collected using the ROV and therefore have associated in-situ video imagery which will aid in species identifications and descriptions. In total, 48 separate sponges were sampled during the 2017 leg from depths between 84 - 875 metres and encompassing latitudes 62°34N to 78°19N. Nine specimens were collected using the ROV and therefore have associated in-situ video imagery which will aid in species identifications and descriptions. In-situ videos are not included in the dataset but will be made available upon request. See Links to data section for contact.

The meteorological observatory Polarstern continuously acquires meteorological parameters during times of ship operation. Measurements are taken on various locations on the vessel, instrument heights above sea level are given below. All data is quality controlled. Measurements are checked daily on board by the operator and again prior to publication. Knowingly affected or erroneous data is removed.

The datasets present new data from microscopic counts and selected nutrient and physical data assembled from the following missions. Aboard the CCGS Louis St-Laurent: IPY Canada's Three Oceans 2007. Aboard the CCGS Amundsen: International Polar Year (IPY) Circumpolar Flaw Lead Study 2008; ArcticNet 2008. Temporal coverage is July-September. Cell density of the three sub-clades MAST-1A, MAST-1B and MAST-1C was measured by cell-counts using fluorescent in situ hybridization with taxa-specific probe. Biomass of phototrophic organisms, of different size classes, was obtained by counts of DAPI-stained cells under epifluorescence microscopy. Samples for total chlorophyll a (chl a) were filtered onto GF/F filters, extracted in either ethanol or acetone and analysed by spectrofluorometry. Chl a was also measured for the < 3 µm size fraction, and chl a in the < 3 µm size fraction was calculate by simple substraction. CCGS Amundsen data: Temperature, salinity, transmissivity, oxygen, and photosynthetically active radiation were provided by Dr. Y. Gratton (Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique, Québec). Nitrate and Phosphate concentrations were provided by Dr. J.-É. Tremblay (Université Laval, Québec). CCGS Louis St-Laurent data were supplied by Drs. E.C. Carmack and J. Nelson (Institute of Ocean Sciences, Sidney, B.C.). Distance to ice edge was obtained from the Canadian Ice Services (http://ice-glaces.ec.gc.ca).