Output

Unique whole number to identify each record. This field should only be used as a reference and should not be used to sort data.

Sequential number representing data entry event. Caution should be used when sorting data. We advise querying data by year and ordering GMT_Minus8_DateTime by oldest to newest, Event by smallest to largest, and Flt_No by smallest to largest. This order will group all records for each flight in chronological order; however, individual flights will not be in chronological order. From 1979 to 2007, a single aircraft may have multiple flight numbers within a single day. Beginning in 2008, a unique flight number was assigned per day, per aircraft. If more than one survey occurred on the same date, each survey will have a unique flight number.

Flight number used to identify a survey. Surveys conducted in the same year have unique flight numbers. When two survey aircraft were operating concurrently within one year, flight numbers for the additional aircraft started at 201. In 2012, a third aircraft was used to conduct surveys to assess the Eastern Chukchi stock of belugas; these flights start with flight number 301. In 2019, a third aircraft conducted surveys in the eastern Beaufort Sea and Amundsen Gulf; these flights start with flight number 401. Caution should be used when sorting data. We advise querying data by year and ordering GMT_Minus8_DateTime by oldest to newest, Event by smallest to largest, and Flt_No by smallest to largest. This order will group all records for each flight in chronological order; however, individual flights will not be in chronological order. From 1979 to 2007, a single aircraft may have multiple flight numbers within a single day. Beginning in 2008, a unique flight number was assigned per day, per aircraft. If more than one survey occurred on the same date, each survey will have a unique flight number.

Date and time in Alaska Standard Time, 8 hours behind Greenwich Mean Time. Caution should be used when sorting data. We advise querying the data by year and ordering GMT_Minus8_DateTime by oldest to newest, Event by smallest to largest, and Flt_No by smallest to largest. This order will group all records for each flight in chronological order; however, individual flights will not be in chronological order. From 1979 to 2007, a single aircraft may have multiple flight numbers within a single day. Beginning in 2008, a unique flight number was assigned per day, per aircraft. If more than one survey occurred on the same date, each survey will have a unique flight number.

Latitude of aircraft in degrees decimal minutes. Used from 1979-2006.

Longitude of aircraft in degrees decimal minutes. Used from 1979-2006.

Latitude of aircraft in decimal degrees WGS84.

Longitude of aircraft in decimal degrees WGS84.

Altitude of aircraft in feet above sea level.

Direction of aircraft heading in degrees. Used starting in 1998. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Indicates whether the event was a flight type change, position update, or sighting. A value of "." indicates an automatic position update. Attributes include CAPs: Cetacean Aggregation Protocols (began in 2018); CAPs strip: Cetacean Aggregation Protocols strip (began in 2018); divert: diverted from transect effort to investigate a sighting (used from 1979-2008); divert to circling: the aircraft diverted from transect or search effort to investigate a sighting (starting in 2009); end transect: transect effort ended; FOV: Field of View effort began (began in 2018); FGF: Focal Group Following effort began (began in 2018); p on CAPs: CAPs passing effort (began in 2018); p on CAPs circling: CAPs circling effort (began in 2018); p on CAPs strip: CAPs strip effort (began in 2018); p on circling – search: circling during search effort (used starting in 2013, retroactively revised data from 2009 – 2011); p on circling – transect: circling during transect effort (used starting in 2013, retroactively revised data for 2009-2012); p on connect: position during a connect line (used from 1979-2008); p on deadhead: position during deadhead (started in 2007); p on FGV: FGF effort (began in 2018); p on FOV: FOV effort (began in 2018); p on search: search effort; p on transect: transect effort; resume: resume transect or search after diverting; resume transect: resume transect after diverting (used from 1979-2008); s on CAPs: sighting made from CAPs passing (began in 2018); s on CAPs circling: sighting made from CAPs circling effort (began in 2018); s on CAPs strip: a sighting made on CAPs strip effort (began in 2018); s on circling – search: sighting made while circling from search effort (used in 2013, retroactively revised from 2009 – 2012); s on circling – transect: sighting made while circling from transect effort (used in 2013, retroactively revised from 2009 – 2012); s on connect: sighting made during a connect leg (used from 1979- 2008); s on FOV: sighting made while on FOV effort (began in 2018); s on search: sighting made during search effort, either when the aircraft was circling (1979-2008) or the aircraft was en route to or from a target survey block or transect line (2009-2021); s on transect: sighting made during transect effort; search: search effort began (i.e., non-transect effort -began in 2007); start transect: transect effort start.

Common name of the animal, track, or vessel sighted. The following values were not used after 2008: "kill site no bear"; "track-belukha"; "track-bowhead"; "track-polar bear"; "track-unknown cet"; and "track-unknown pin". In 2012, the following changes were retroactively made to all years, to keep naming convention consistent: "bowhead" to "bowhead whale"; "orca" to "killer whale"; "minke" to "minke whale"; "humpback" to "humpback whale"; "unknown cetacean" to "unid cetacean"; "unknown pin" to "unid pinniped". In 2012, the following options were added: "Dall sheep"; "buoy"; "debris"; and "unid object". In 2013, the following changes were retroactively made to all years, to keep naming convention consistent: "small craft" to "vessel small craft"; "commercial vessel" to "vessel commercial"; "seismic vessel" to "vessel seismic"; "icebreaker" to "vessel icebreaker"; "lg. rec. vessel" to "vessel lg. rec."; and "sm. rec. vessel" to "vessel sm. rec.". In 2013, the following options were added: "vessel research" and "sleeper shark", and the following options were removed: "northern sea lion"; "northern fur seal"; "harbor seal"; "sea otter"; and "aircraft". In 2014, the following options were added: "vessel fishing" and "vessel military". In 2017, the following options were added: “unid shark” and “bait ball”, and “sleeper shark” was removed. In 2019, “unid fish” was added. Additional land animal options include: “arctic fox”, “brown bear”, “caribou”, “gray wolf”, and “musk ox”. Abbreviations: "unid"=unidentified, "cet"=cetacean, "pin"=pinniped, "lg. rec."=large recreational, "sm. rec."=small recreational. Sightings of cetaceans, walruses, and polar bears were of highest priority, non-walrus pinnipeds were secondary, and everything else was tertiary.

Visual cue that caused the observer to first notice the sighting. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Environment where the sighting was made. In 2015, habitats ¿lrg broken floes¿, ¿med broken floes¿, and ¿sm broken floes¿ were consolidated into one habitat, as described below. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Behavior exhibited by the sighting. In 2013, redundant descriptions were consolidated into one behavior, as described below, and any additional information was recorded in the "notes" field. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Indicates the subjective age class and/or group composition of the sighting. May not be inclusive of all animals in the sighting. Used from 1979-2008. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Total number of animals or vessels counted in a sighting. Starting in 2008, the total number of animals or vessels initially counted, prior to diverting to circle. For cetaceans, the relative area within which animals were considered a single group was five whale lengths from the closest animal. (Note: Prior to 2007, numbers equaling exactly 100 may be minimum estimates. Check the notes field for additional information.) A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Final count of animals or vessels in a sighting; usually determined during circling initiated after initial sighting was made on transect or search. Number may differ from Totalno. If different from Totalno, Final_group takes precedence. Used starting in 2009. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Minimum estimate of animals or vessels in a sighting. Used starting in 2009. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Maximum estimate of animals or vessels in a sighting. Used starting in 2009. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Total number of calves, cubs, or pups counted in a sighting. Calves are defined as being less than half the length of the accompanying adult. If Final_group is NULL and Calfno>0, then Calfno is included in Totalno. If Final_group>0 and Calfno>0, then Calfno is included in Final_group. If Final_group>0 and Calfno>0, then Calfno may or may not be included in Totalno. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Total number of calves, cubs, or pups counted in a sighting after diverting to circle from search or transect effort or during CAPs circling. Any calf sighted during survey mode “s on circling – search”, “s on circling – transect”, and “CAPs circling” should have a numeric value of 1 or more in the “calf_on_circle” field. Totals are included in Calfno. Used starting in 2009. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Angle from the horizon to a sighting, when the sighting was abeam of the aircraft, measured in degrees. Angles range from 0 to 90 with 0 at the horizon and 90 directly under the aircraft. Angles from Grumman Goose aircraft could not exceed 70 due to the lack of bubble windows. Primary and non-primary observer windows are not the same and all angle readings from non-primary observers (PrimObs= 0) should be interpreted with caution. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Side of plane from which a sighting was made. Used starting in 1989. Starting in 2013, this field was automatically populated in the survey program when an observer name was selected. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Predominant swim direction or heading of sighting, not corrected for magnetic variation. From 1979 to 2006, this number was recorded in magnetic north compass degrees, obtained from the aircraft's compass. Starting in 2007, Swimdir was recorded in clock directions relative to the aircraft. Actual swim directions, corrected for magnetic variation and/or calculated from clock directions, are in the Swimdir_True field. Starting in 2012, “swimdir” was applied to only vessels and cetacean sightings when behavior was swim and dive. Swim direction was occasionally entered for other species or behaviors, but was not done so consistently and the accuracy of those data are unknown. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Subjective estimate of animal's swimming speed or vessel's traveling speed. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Indicates whether an animal responded to the aircraft's presence. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Total number of animals that responded to the survey aircraft. Used starting in 2013. NoReacted values were added for 2009 to 2012. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Indicates whether the sighting was considered a repeat within the same survey. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded. When Entry is “s on FOV”, repeat will always be “yes.”

Not recorded prior to 1989. From 1989-2006, initials or identification number of the observer who first observed a sighting. Starting in 2007, the full name of the observer was entered. In 2011, an effort was undertaken to replace all initials with full names where known. Initials that remain in this field are individuals not able to be identified based on available information. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Numeric code to indicate whether a sighting was made by a primary observer or a secondary observer. Used starting in 2013. In 2013, retroactively added values for 1989-2012. Primary observers could not be determined prior to 1989. A value of -1 indicates no data were collected.

Subjective description of the sky conditions. A value of "n/a" indicates not applicable. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded. Starting in 2014, "NA" was used instead of "n/a".

Subjective description of the predominant impediment to an observer's field of view on the left side of the aircraft. A value of "n/a" indicates not applicable. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded. Starting in 2014, "NA" was used instead of "n/a".

Subjective description of the predominant impediment to an observer's field of view on the right side of the aircraft. A value of "n/a" indicates not applicable. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded. Starting in 2014, "NA" was used instead of "n/a".

Estimate in kilometers of visibility on the left side of the aircraft. A value of "n/a" indicates not applicable. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded. Starting in 2014, "NA" was used instead of "n/a".

Estimate in kilometers of visibility on the right side of the aircraft. A value of "n/a" indicates not applicable. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded. Starting in 2014, "NA" was used instead of "n/a".

Estimate of the percent of ocean surface within the visual range for the left and right observer, averaged together (1979-1991, 2008-2017) or within 1 km of the aircraft (1992-2007) covered by sea ice. Frazil was not included in the estimate. A value of "n/a" indicates not applicable. A value of "." or -1 indicates no data were recorded. Starting in 2014, "NA" was used instead of "n/a". Not used after 2017.

Predominant type of sea ice within the visual range of the observer (1979-1991, 2008-2021) or within 1 km of the aircraft (1992-2007). A value of "n/a" indicates not applicable. A value of "." or -1 indicates no data were recorded. Starting in 2014, "NA" was used instead of "n/a".

Observed sea state using the Beaufort Wind Force classification system. A value of "n/a" indicates not applicable. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded. Starting in 2014, "NA" was used instead of "n/a".

Survey block in which a sighting event occurred. Survey block is populated based on the location provided by LatTemp/LongTemp. A value of 0 indicates that the sighting fell outside of survey block boundaries. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Water depth in meters. A value of 99999 indicates no data were recorded. Depths were calculated using the International Bathymetric Chart of the Arctic Ocean (IBCAO), a raster image available from NOAA. Processing of the raster and its resolution have changed over time. Prior to 2009, projection and resolution are unknown. In 2009, the raster was projected to Equidistant Conic with a resolution of 2.0 km, and latitude and longitude (used to calculate depth) were acquired from the ArcLat/ArcLong fields. In 2010, the raster was projected to Polar Stereographic with a resolution of 2.036 km, and latitude and longitude were acquired from the LatTemp/LongTemp fields. In 2011, depth data for all years were revised using an updated raster (raster updated by M. Hay of Resource Data, Inc. on 12/19/2010, projected to Polar Stereographic with 2.036 km resolution after geoprocessing). Depth values were recalculated for 1979-2009 data using positions from the ArcLat/ArcLong fields, and for 2010 data using positions from the LatTemp/LongTemp fields (i.e., actual positions when available, otherwise plane positions). Starting in 2013, depths were derived from IBCAO version 3.0, with 500 meter pixel resolution, using positions from the LatTemp/LongTemp fields which were projected to the IBCAO native spatial reference of Polar Stereographic.

X-axis position of the aircraft in Universal Transverse Mercator Zone 6 North. Used from 1979-2006.

Y-axis position of the aircraft in Universal Transverse Mercator Zone 6 North. Used from 1979-2006.

Primary agency responsible for the survey and the platform used. The data acquisition program initially populates this field with "COMIDA" or "BWASP"; these are converted to the agency_platform convention during post-field processing.

Predominant swim direction or heading of a sighting in true north compass degrees (i.e., corrected for magnetic variation). Prior to 2007, this value was derived by taking Swimdir degrees and correcting for magnetic variation. Starting in 2007, this value was derived by converting Swimdir clock directions to degrees, using airhead_gps, and correcting for magnetic variation using declination as reported by the GPS unit in the fields "magvar_gps" and "magvar_dir.” Starting in 2012, this field was assigned a numeric value only for vessels or cetacean sightings when behavior was swim and dive. Swim direction was occasionally entered for other species or behaviors, but was not done so consistently and the accuracy of those data are unknown. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Magnetic declination as reported by the GPS unit. Used starting in 2007. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded. A value of 0 should be disregarded and may indicate that data were not received by the GPS unit.

Direction of magnetic declination as reported by the GPS unit. Used starting in 2007. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Aircraft heading, or direction of travel, as reported by the GPS unit. Used starting in 2007. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Aircraft altitude derived from GPS satellite triangulation, as reported by the GPS unit. Units are in feet and referenced to mean sea level (MSL). Used starting in 2013. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded. In 2016, alt_gps values did not update as frequently as in previous years; sometimes the same value carries down for multiple events.

Rating of level of certainty of the presence or absence of a calf in a sighting. All cetacean sightings should have a value of 1, 2, or 3 entered, except for CAPs and CAPs strip, which will have a value of -1. The accuracy of Calf_Detect_Cert is unknown for non-cetacean sightings with a value of 1, 2, or 3 listed. After 2014, except for a few exceptions, sightings of non-cetaceans and all other events will have -1. Used starting in 2007. In previous versions of the database from 2007 to 2010, this field was named "Certainty". A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Numeric code that corresponds with a category describing the group size and/or composition of a sighting. Used from 2007-2012. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Indicates whether the entry was saved or deleted. Deleted entries are kept solely for a complete record of logged events, and should not be used in any analyses.

Any pertinent information that was not recorded elsewhere.

Numeric code that corresponds with the flight type, or survey mode. See abstract and methodology for discussion of different flight types. Starting in 2009, all automatic updates were recorded as -1.

Number or letter used to identify a transect line in the eastern Chukchi Sea and western Beaufort Sea study areas and in the eastern Beaufort Sea and Amundsen Gulf (known as ABA project). Transect numbers and their locations vary each year. Used starting 19 September 2009 in the Chukchi Sea study area. In 2015, a similar method was adopted in the western Beaufort study area and transect IDs were retroactively added through 1979. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Numeric code to indicate species groupings. This field was created solely for programming purposes for the data collection software, but can be used for analyses if desired. Used starting in 2007. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Numeric code to indicate entry type. This field was created solely for programming purposes for the data collection software, but is also useful for data QA/QC. Used starting in 2007. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Actual longitude, in decimal degrees, of a sighting calculated from aircraft altitude [Alt (2009-2012); alt_gps (starting in 2013, when there was an alt_gps value available)], clinometer angle (Clinometer), and side of plane (Sop). Used starting in 2009. In 2011, values for 1998-2008 were retroactively calculated for all cetacean, pinniped, and land mammal sightings where applicable. The VBA module used to run the calculation up until 2011 projected data to UTMZ6, so distortion may exist outside of the Beaufort Sea. Starting in 2012, each point was projected to the UTM zone in which it was located. XofWhale locations for sightings resulting from clinometer angles of non-primary observers (PrimObs= 0) are only computed for sightings made from Otter aircraft (1998-2010). A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Actual latitude, in decimal degrees, of a sighting calculated from aircraft altitude [Alt (2009-2012); alt_gps (starting in 2013, when there was an alt_gps value available)], clinometer angle (Clinometer), and side of plane (Sop). Used starting in 2009. In 2011, values for 1998-2008 were calculated for all cetacean, pinniped, and land mammal sightings where applicable. The VBA module used to run the calculation up until 2011 projected data to UTMZ6, so distortion may exist outside of the Beaufort Sea. Starting in 2012, each point was projected to the UTM zone in which it was located. YofWhale locations for sightings resulting from clinometer angles of non-primary observers (PrimObs= 0) are only computed for sightings made from Otter aircraft (1998-2010). A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Distance between a sighting and closest point to shore, expressed in kilometers. A GIS feature class representing a normalized shoreline (NS) was created to standardize the location from which distance measurements were taken. Prior to 2011, distances had only been calculated for bowhead sightings, and the NS used had coarse resolution and did not encompass the entire study area. Because distances were based on a NS with a limited extent, distance values in all databases created prior to 2011 should be taken with caution. On 2/8/2012, a new NS was created that 1) had higher resolution to better fit the natural coastline of Alaska, 2) more closely wrapped around the outer edges of lagoons and barrier islands, 3) was projected to North American Equidistant Conic, a projection more appropriate for distance measurements, and 4) had custom projection parameters to better fit the study area (central meridian=-154.5, latitude of origin=70.5, standard parallels=60.5, 80.5). Distances were re-calculated for all saved sightings from 1979-2011, north of 67.5 degrees N and west of 139.5 degrees W (based on the extent of the NS), using actual positions when available (X/YofWhale), otherwise plane positions (ArcLat/Long). Negative values represent sightings landward of the NS; positive values represent sightings seaward of the NS. All remaining records should be Null. M. Hay of XeraGIS generated distance calculations for 2012-2021 data using an NS adapted from the one described above, using a Universal Transverse Mercator Zone 5N projection.

Full name of individual filling the data recorder position. Used starting in 2008. Prior to 2008, this information was stored in the FlightInfo table. It was moved to the Output table to facilitate switching out observers and recorders mid-flight. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Full name of individual filling the left observer position. Used starting in 2008. Prior to 2008, this information was stored in the FlightInfo table. It was moved to the Output table to facilitate switching out observers and recorders mid-flight. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Full name of individual filling the right observer position. Used starting in 2008. Prior to 2008, this information was stored in the FlightInfo table. It was moved to the Output table to facilitate switching out observers and recorders mid-flight. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Full name of individual filling the fourth observer position. Used starting in 2009. This field was created to facilitate switching out observers and recorders mid-flight. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Full name of survey aircraft pilot. Used starting in 2012. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Full name of survey aircraft copilot. Used starting in 2012. A value of "." indicates no data were recorded.

Numeric code indicating whether photographs were taken of an event. Used starting in 2009. A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded.

Latitude, in decimal degrees WGS84, used for real-time mapping during the survey. Used starting in 2009. In 2013, retroactively added values for 1979-2008. It is the latitude of a sighting, when the actual position (YofWhale) of a sighting can be calculated; otherwise, it is the latitude of the aircraft (ArcLat). A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded. Disregard values of 0.

Longitude, in decimal degrees WGS84, used for real-time mapping during the survey. Used starting in 2009. In 2013, retroactively added values for 1979-2008. It is the longitude of a sighting, when the actual position (XofWhale) of a sighting can be calculated; otherwise, it is the longitude of the aircraft (ArcLong). A value of -1 indicates no data were recorded. Disregard values of 0.

During Field of View trials, the abeam entries (“s on FOV”) are accompanied by an initial and final mark; the assoc_event field gets populated with the initial and final mark event numbers. The assoc_event field for initial and final events gets populated with the abeam event number. Added starting in 2018.