QUALITY ASSESSMENT OF SEA LEVEL DATA by the UH SEA LEVEL CENTER/NATIONAL OCEANOGRAPHIC DATA CENTER JOINT ARCHIVE FOR SEA LEVEL updated: 06 Feb 2019 Station : Balboa Latitude: 08 57.9N Country : Panama Longitude: 079 34.4W JASL # : 302A Time Meridian: 075W (GMT - 5 hr) GLOSS # : 168 TOGA #: P079 NODC #: 70078901 Contributor : Autoridad de Canal de Panama Seccion de Meteorologia e Hidrologia Division de Ingenieria Panama Canal, Panama 1970-1997, Panama Canal Commission Engineering Division Unit 2300 APO AA 34011 and for key-entry of 1907-1969 data UH SEA LEVEL CENTER Originator : same Original Data: analog and digital Instrmnt Type: float and well gauges, primary are digital gauges: 1907-1970: standard float/well (type F analog) 1971-1973: Stevens Type F Analog 1973-1980: Fisher & Porter Digital Model 35-1551 1981-1987: Stevens Digital Model 7001 1982-present: Stevens Model A71 Analog 1988-present: Handar Digital 550B Hydrologger 8/2005-present: Waterlog radar gauge, model H-3611 Digitzd Intvl: analog except 15 min for Hydrologger and radar Present Data : Hourly, daily, and monthly values obtained by: Hourly : spot sampled on the hour Daily : 119-point convolution filter (Bloomfield, 1976) centered on noon applied to the hourly data with respective periods of the 95, 50, and 5% amplitude points at 124.0, 60.2, and 40.2 hours Monthly: Simple average of all daily values; calculated if 7 or fewer days are missing Span of data : 19 Jun 1907 - 31 Dec 2018 Gaps > 1 mon : 01 Jan - 31 Dec 1979; 01 Jul - 31 Dec 1989; 01 Jan 2003 - 01 May 2003 Time Refernce: GMT (hours 00-23) Space-filler Flag :-9999 Units : millimeters Missing Data Flag : 9999 Existing : Yes Operational : Yes Sat. Trans. : No Distribution : 1907-2018 Refernce Levl: The data have been linked to tide staff zero by the originators. The tide staff zero is set to -12.00' below the Precise Level Datum or Primary Bench Mark, which was first identified in 1911. A brass plate bench mark was established in April 1917 with elevation 19.764' PLD. The leveling history for this plate is as follows: date level above PLD (PBM) in feet 04/15/18 19.757 03/11/21 19.761 10/15/21 19.757 05/04/22 19.765 06/14/23 19.757 04/24/24 19.763 06/29/42 19.746 This benchmark has since not been recovered and very little geodetic information is available up until recent years. A tsunami is evident on 23-25 May, 1960. From information provided by the originators and from analysis of hourly residuals and daily plots, 1335 mm were added to the original data from 22 May - 22 July 1987 and 1285 mm added to 23 July to 31 July, 1987. The following minor level adjustments were made based on comparisons with the Naos gauge: yyyymmddhh - yyyymmddhh added to original (mm) ----------------------- ---------------------- 1992092913 - 1992100109 -350 1994122219 - 1995011017 -50 2018-03-15: series level adjusted by +307 mm 1907-06-19 to 2016-12-31 to match level of new data receieved 2018-03-15 from the originators, who define the zero level as defined above (12' below the PLD). Comment : Differences in daily values with Tumaco, Puerto Armuelles, and Quepos indicate that the period 22 May - 20 July, 1987 may be about 8 cm high. The anomalously low values in 1988 and 1989 are in accordance with the wind during the same period, which was anomalously strong from ENE during winter months. This feature is under investigation by the originators. The anomalously high levels of Sept 29 - Oct 1, 1992 have been confirmed by the originators not to be an instrument malfunction. Otherwise, the daily and monthly means do not show any signs of reference level shifts and agree well with the nearest stations, Tumaco, Puerto Armuelles, and Quepos. The data for 1907-1981 are from location: 08 57.4N, 079 33.7W. The station was moved about a mile to the present location, which is referred to as "Diablo Heights." The station renames nominally referred to as "Balboa" for the JASL. Timing quality improves in 2005. GPS Coordinates: 08.965554 -079.573333 08 Nov 2012 CI MISSING REPLACED GAPS QUESTIONABLE YEAR (%) DATA OR BAD DATA FLUCTUATIONS ---- --- -------------------- --------------- -------------------- 1907 52 177-179,203-206 (21)222-(20)223 234-241,280-299,309- (00)227-(11)227 330,335-365 (18)232-(17)233 (18)334-(23)334 (01)335-(15)335 1908 99 13-15,177-178 none 1-365 1909 100 none none none 1910 100 none none none 1911 100 none none none 1912 100 none (01)041-(08)041 none 1913 100 none none none 1914 100 none none 261-266 1915 100 none none 295 1916 100 none none none 1917 100 none (04)083-(15)083 274-275 (14)255-(13)256 1918 100 none none none 1919 100 none none none 1920 100 none (06)122-(05)123 none (06)204-(05)205 1921 100 none none none 1922 100 none none none 1923 100 none none none 1924 100 none (18)184-(06)185 none 1925 100 none none none 1926 100 none none none 1927 100 none none none 1928 100 none none none 1929 100 none none none 1930 100 none none none 1931 100 none none none 1932 100 none (06)180-(05)181 none 1933 100 none (05)354-(04)355 72-74 1934 100 none none 289 1935 100 none none none 1936 100 none none none 1937 100 none none none 1938 100 none none none 1939 100 none none none 1940 100 none (07)088-(05)089 none 1941 100 none none none 1942 100 none none none 1943 100 none none none 1944 100 none (17)056-(05)057 none (22)086-(05)087 1945 100 none (15)042-(23)042 none (01)043-(10)043 (13)259-(06)260 1946 100 none (15)017-(13)018 none (13)217-(04)218 1947 100 none none none 1948 100 none (15)121-(23)121 none 1949 100 none (11)059-(23)059 134-136 (00)239-(10)239 1950 100 none none none 1951 100 none none none 1952 100 none none 92-94 1953 100 none none none 1954 100 none (00)275-(17)275 none (06)274-(05)275 1955 100 none (11)115-(07)116 27-30 (03)244-(12)244 1956 100 none (17)195-(01)196 none 1957 100 none none 211-212 1958 100 none none none 1959 100 none none none 1960 100 none (05)144-(12)144 55-57,84-87,132,136, 161-162,190,194,197, 309 1961 100 none none 44-45,47-48,74-75, 120-121,210-211,362- 363 1962 100 none none 112-114,257-258 1963 100 none none 9,290 1964 100 none none 49-50,85-86,102,220- 222,253-254, 1965 100 none (17)162-(00)163 92-93,95-99,105-110, 213-216 1966 100 none none 260 1967 100 none none 33-34,40,99,115-116 1968 100 none none 133 1969 100 none (18)101-(05)102 267 1970 100 none (13)237-(06)238 116,200-201 (13)237-(06)238 1971 100 none none 4-5,60,209-210,244, 322-323 1972 100 none none 104-110,117-119,125- 126,162-170,176-178, 182-184,212,271 1973 100 none none 94-95,224-228,123- 124,128-129,216,224- 228,255-256,283-285 1974 100 none none 244-290 1975 100 none none 28-29,32-37,54-60, 86-88,90,115-120, 146-147,170-196,216- 222,234-238,246-249, 252-271,275-298,304- 312,319-322 1976 100 none none 3-5,20-23,32-37,48- 50,75-81,105,237- 241,255-257,267-270 1977 100 none none 152-153,180-184,225- 258,261-278,352-365 1978 100 none none 1-3,12-20,38-40,84- 93,114-128,172-177, 258-275,335-338,347- 365 1979 0 1-365 none none 1980 100 none none 105-108,240-244,286- 288,328-332 1981 95 73-92 none 114-117,149-151, 213-215 1982 100 none none 11-12,39-45,120-121, 213-220,305-320,363- 365 1983 100 none none 56,86-87,133-138 1984 100 none none 1-3,134-135,137-140, 202-204 1985 100 none none 36-38 1986 100 none none 41-42,111-112,118- 119,187,218-219,235- 236,244-252,263-265, 273-278,287-289,298- 299,303-307 1987 94 121-142 (01)252-(22)252 27-32,103-105,293, 304,332,357-359 1988 99 92-95 none 5-10,18-25,32-39, 46-50,76-81,108-111 1989 50 none none 29-30,97-98,124-128 1990 99 1 none none 1991 100 none (08)022-(15)022 18-21 1992 99 273-275 none 268-272,285-288 1993 100 none none none 1994 100 none none none 1995 100 none none none 1996 98 168-173 none 155-168 1997 100 none none 244-365 1998 98 113-117 none 305-334 1999 100 none none 1-365 2000 99 243-245 (18)160-(17)161 1-191,302-306,347- 350 2001 99 341-344 (19)303-(15)304 9-240,274-365 2002 100 none none 1-365 2003 67 1-121 (23)323-(13)324 121-365 2004 100 none none 1-365 2005 100 none none none 2006 100 none none none 2007 100 none none 23-24 2008 100 none none none 2009 100 none none 260 2010 100 none none 213-243 2011 100 none (22)139-(13)140 none 2012 100 none none 278 2013 100 none none none 2014 100 none (06)027-(13)027 none 2015 100 none none none 2016 100 none none none 2017 100 none none none 2018 100 none none none