q-Q Getting started with

TEOS-10 and the

Gibbs Seawater (GSW)
Oceanographic Toolbox
VERSION 3.06.12
July 2020
The  International  Thermodynamic  Equation  Of  Seawater  –  2010  (TEOS-­‐‑10)  was  developed  by  
SCOR/IAPSO  Working  Group  127  and  was  adopted  by  the  Intergovernmental  Oceanographic  
Commission  (IOC).    The  members  of  SCOR/IAPSO  Working  Group  127  were  as  follows.      

Trevor  J.  McDougall,  (chair),  University  of  New  South  Wales,  Sydney,  Australia    
Rainer  Feistel,  Leibniz-­‐‑Institut  fuer  Ostseeforschung,  Warnemuende,  Germany    
Daniel  G.  Wright+,  formerly  of  Bedford  Institute  of  Oceanography,  Dartmouth,  Canada    
Rich  Pawlowicz,  University  of  British  Columbia,  Vancouver,  Canada    
Frank  J.  Millero,  University  of  Miami,  Florida,  USA    
David  R.  Jackett++,  formerly  of  CSIRO,  Hobart,  Australia    
Brian  A.  King,  National  Oceanography  Centre,  Southampton,  UK    
Giles  M.  Marion,  Desert  Research  Institute,  Reno,  USA    
Steffen  Seitz,  Physikalisch-­‐‑Technische  Bundesanstalt  (PTB),  Braunschweig,  Germany    
Petra  Spitzer,  Physikalisch-­‐‑Technische  Bundesanstalt  (PTB),  Braunschweig,  Germany    
C-­‐‑T.  Arthur  Chen,  National  Sun  Yat-­‐‑Sen  University,  Taiwan,  R.O.C.    
 
   +  deceased,  8th  July  2010      
++  deceased,  31st  March  2012      

The   photograph   on   the   front   cover   of   a   CTD   and   lowered   ADCP   hovering   just   below   the   sea  
surface   was   taken   south   of   Timor   from   the   Southern   Surveyor   in   August   2003   by   Ann   Gronell  
Thresher.    Document  cover  by  Louise  Bell.          
 

 
For  bibliographic  purposes,  this  document  should  be  cited  as  follows:      
McDougall  T.  J.  and  P.  M.  Barker,  2011:  Getting  started  with  TEOS-­‐‑10  and  the  Gibbs  Seawater  (GSW)  
Oceanographic  Toolbox,  28pp.,  SCOR/IAPSO  WG127,  ISBN  978-­‐‑0-­‐‑646-­‐‑55621-­‐‑5.      

This  document  is  available  from  [Link]-­‐‑[Link]        

May 2011

Author:     McDougall,  Trevor  J.    

Title:     Getting  started  with  TEOS-­‐‑10  and  the  Gibbs  Seawater  (GSW)  Oceanographic  Toolbox  /    
  Trevor  J.  McDougall  and  Paul  M.  Barker.    
ISBN:   9780646556215  (pbk.)    
Subjects:   Gibbs  Seawater  (GSW)  Oceanographic  Toolbox  (Computer  program)    
  Seawater-­‐‑-­‐‑Thermodynamics-­‐‑-­‐‑Computer  programs  
Other  Authors/Contributors:  Barker,  Paul  M.  
Dewey  Number:    551.46    
 
 1

Getting started with TEOS-10

and the
Gibbs Seawater (GSW) Oceanographic Toolbox
version 3.06.12

Trevor J. McDougall1 and Paul M. Barker1

May 2011, updated July 2020 with the release of

version 3.06.12 of the GSW Oceanographic Toolbox

Table of Contents page

1. Preamble ………………………………………………………………………... 2
2. Installing the GSW Oceanographic Toolbox in MATLAB ……….…………... 4
3. Absolute Salinity SA ………………………………………………….………... 5
4. Preformed Salinity S* …………………………………………………….……. 8
5. Conservative Temperature Θ …..……………………………………………... 10
6. Which types of salinity and temperature should be archived? ………........ 12
7. The 75-term expression vˆ ( SA , Θ, p ) for specific volume .................….…….... 13
8. Changes to oceanographic practice under TEOS-10 ….....……..…………... 18
9. Ocean modelling using TEOS-10 ……………………………………….......… 19
10. A guide to the GSW Oceanographic Toolbox ……… ……………………… 21
11. References …………………………………………………………………….… 25
12. Recommended nomenclature, symbols and units in oceanography …....... 26

1School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
email: [Link]@[Link]
2 Getting Started with TEOS-10

1. Preamble
The International Thermodynamic Equation Of Seawater – 2010 (TEOS-10) allows all the
thermodynamic properties of pure water, ice, seawater and moist air to be evaluated in a self-
consistent manner. For the first time the effects of the variations in seawater composition
around the world ocean are accounted for; these spatial variations of seawater composition
cause density differences that are equivalent to ten times the precision of our Practical
Salinity measurements at sea.
The GSW Oceanographic Toolbox of TEOS-10 is concerned primarily with the properties
of pure liquid water and of seawater; the TEOS-10 software for evaluating the properties of
ice and of humid air is available in the SIA (Seawater-Ice-Air) software library from the
TEOS-10 web site, [Link]
TEOS-10 has introduced several new variables into oceanography, including Absolute
Salinity S A , Preformed Salinity S* , and Conservative Temperature Θ . These variables are
introduced in this document, and then the use of these variables is discussed, followed by the
complete listing and description of the functions available in the GSW toolbox.
Absolute Salinity is the salinity argument of the TEOS-10 algorithms which give the
various thermodynamic properties of seawater, and under TEOS-10 Absolute Salinity S A is
the salinity variable to be used in scientific publications. Note, however, it is Practical
Salinity SP which must be reported to and stored in national databases. The practice of
storing one type of salinity in national databases (Practical Salinity), but using a different
type of salinity in publications (Absolute Salinity), is exactly analogous to our present
practice with temperature; in situ temperature is stored in databases (since it is the measured
quantity), but the temperature variable that is used in publications is a calculated quantity,
being potential temperature to date, and from now, Conservative Temperature.
For the past thirty years, under EOS-80 we have taken the “raw” data of Practical
Salinity SP (PSS-78), in situ temperature t (now ITS-90) and pressure p and we have used
an algorithm to calculate potential temperature θ in order to analyze and publish water-
mass characteristics on the SP − θ diagram. On this SP − θ diagram we have been able to
draw curved contours of potential density using EOS-80. Under TEOS-10 this practice has
now changed. Density and potential density (and all types of geostrophic streamfunction
including dynamic height anomaly) are now not functions of Practical Salinity SP but rather
are functions of Absolute Salinity S A . TEOS-10 also defines a new temperature variable,
Conservative Temperature Θ , which takes the place of potential temperature θ .
Conservative Temperature Θ has the advantage over θ of more accurately representing the
“heat content” of seawater. Under TEOS-10 is not possible to draw isolines of potential
density on a SP − θ diagram. Rather, because of the spatial variations of seawater
composition, a given value of potential density defines an area on the SP − θ diagram, not a
curved line. Hence for the analysis and publication of ocean data under TEOS-10 we need to
change from using the SP − θ diagram which was appropriate under EOS-80, to using the
SA − Θ diagram. It is on this SA − Θ diagram that the isolines of potential density can be
drawn under TEOS-10.
As a fast-track precursor to the rest of this document, we note that these calculations
can be performed using the functions of the GSW Oceanographic Toolbox as follows. The
observed variables ( SP , t , p ) , together with longitude and latitude, are used to first form
Absolute Salinity S A using gsw_SA_from_SP, and then Conservative Temperature Θ is
calculated using gsw_CT_from_t. Oceanographic water masses are then analyzed on the
SA − Θ diagram (for example, by using gsw_SA_CT_plot), and potential density contours
can be drawn on this SA − Θ diagram using gsw_rho(SA,CT,p_ref).
 Getting started with TEOS-10 3

The more prominent advantages of TEOS-10 compared with EOS-80 are

• For the first time the influence of the spatially varying composition of seawater is
systematically taken into account through the use of Absolute Salinity S A . In the open
ocean, this has a non-trivial effect on the horizontal density gradient, and thereby on
ocean velocities and “heat” transports calculated via the “thermal wind” relation.
• The new salinity variable, Absolute Salinity S A , is measured in SI units (e.g. g kg −1 ).
• The Gibbs function approach of TEOS-10 allows the calculation of internal energy,
entropy, enthalpy, potential enthalpy and the chemical potentials of seawater as well
as the freezing temperature, and the latent heats of melting and of evaporation. These
quantities were not available from EOS-80 but are essential for the accurate
accounting of “heat” in the ocean and for the consistent and accurate treatment of air-
sea and ice-sea heat fluxes in coupled climate models.
• In particular, Conservative Temperature Θ accurately represents the “heat content”
per unit mass of seawater, and is to be used in place of potential temperature θ in
oceanography.
• The thermodynamic quantities available from TEOS-10 are totally consistent with each
other, while this was not the case with EOS-80.
• A single algorithm for seawater density (the 75-term computationally-efficient
( )
expression v̂ SA ,Θ, p ) can now be used for ocean modelling, for observational
oceanography, and for theoretical studies. By contrast, for the past 30 years we have
used different algorithms for density in ocean modelling and in observational
oceanography and inverse modelling.
The present document (McDougall and Barker, 2011) provides a short description of the
three new oceanographic variables S A , S* and Θ , leading into a discussion of the changes to
observational oceanography and ocean modelling under TEOS-10 (compared with EOS-80),
and then we list and describe the functions in the GSW Oceanographic Toolbox. The present
document ends with the recommendations of SCOR/IAPSO Working Group 127, as endorsed
by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, for the nomenclature, symbols and
units to be used in physical oceanography, repeated from appendix L of IOC et al. (2010).
Another document “What every oceanographer needs to know about TEOS-10 (The TEOS-10
Primer)” (Pawlowicz, 2010) provides a succinct introduction to the thermodynamic theory
underlying TEOS-10 and is available from [Link].
Note that when referring to the use of TEOS-10, it is the TEOS-10 Manual which should
be referenced as IOC et al. (2010) [IOC, SCOR and IAPSO, 2010: The international
thermodynamic equation of seawater – 2010: Calculation and use of thermodynamic properties.
Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, Manuals and Guides No. 56, UNESCO
(English), 196 pp.].
4 Getting Started with TEOS-10

2. Installing the GSW Oceanographic Toolbox in MATLAB

Step 1
Download the GSW Oceanographic Toolbox in MATLAB from [Link].

Step 2
Unzip the Toolbox to a directory you name “GSW”.
ENSURE THAT THE FOUR SUBFOLDERS (html, library, pdf,
thermodynamics_from_t) HAVE ALSO BEEN EXTRACTED.

Step 3 (within MATLAB)

Add the “GSW” directory to your MATLAB path using “Add with subfolders …”
That is, use the menus as follows “File”  “Set Path…”  “Add with subfolders …”.
(Alternatively, the “addpath” command could be used).
ENSURE THAT THE FOUR SUBFOLDERS (html, library, pdf,
thermodynamics_from_t) HAVE ALSO BEEN ADDED TO THE PATH.
Step 4
Download and install an optimisation solver if you wish to use the 2 stabilisation
functions, gsw_stabilise_SA_CT and gsw_stabilise_SA_const_t.
We recommend Tomlab CPLEX or IBM ILOG CPLEX Optimization Studio.
Tomlab is available from [Link]
IBM ILOG CPLEX Optimization Studio is free for academics and students through
their academic initiative program and is available from [Link]

Step 5
Run gsw_check_functions to check that the Toolbox is correctly installed and that
there are no conflicts. (This function runs three stored vertical profiles through all of
the GSW functions, and checks that the outputs are within pre-defined limits of the
correct values. These pre-defined limits are a factor of approximately a hundred larger
than the errors expected from the numerical precision of different computers, at the
standard double precision of MATLAB).

If the MATLAB Desktop is running,

Step 6
Run gsw_front_page to gain access to the front page of the GSW Oceanographic
Toolbox, which describes all aspects of the Toolbox.

Having installed the GSW Oceanographic Toolbox, the command gsw_contents will
show the contents list of the software functions. The software descriptions and the help files
for the GSW functions can be accessed by clicking on the function names on this list.
In addition, we have included a short demonstration function, gsw_demo, to introduce
the user to the GSW Oceanographic Toolbox. gsw_demo uses two stored  SP , t , p  profiles
from the North Pacific and demonstrates, in a step-by-step manner, how to convert these
into  SA , , p  profiles. gsw_demo then demonstrates how to evaluate several water-
column properties such as dynamic height, geostrophic streamfunction and geostrophic
velocity, as well as forming potential density contours on the SA   diagram.
A user may want to run gsw_check_functions periodically to confirm that the software
remains uncorrupted.
 Getting started with TEOS-10 5

3. Absolute Salinity SA
Perhaps the most apparent change in using TEOS-10 compared with using the
International Equation of State of seawater (EOS-80) is the adoption of Absolute Salinity S A
instead of Practical Salinity S P (PSS-78) as the salinity argument for evaluating the
thermodynamic properties of seawater. Importantly, Practical Salinity is retained as the
salinity variable that is stored in national databases. This is done to maintain continuity in
the archived salinity variable, and also because Practical Salinity is virtually the measured
variable (whereas Absolute Salinity is a calculated variable).
The “raw” physical oceanographic data, as collected from ships and from autonomous
platforms (e. g. Argo), and as stored in national oceanographic data bases, are
• Practical Salinity ( S P , unitless, PSS-78) and
• in situ temperature ( t, °C , ITS-90) as functions of
• sea pressure ( p, dbar ), at a series of
• longitudes and latitudes.
Under TEOS-10 all the thermodynamic properties are functions of Absolute Salinity S A
(rather than of Practical Salinity), hence the first step in processing oceanographic data is to
calculate Absolute Salinity, and this is accomplished by the GSW function
gsw_SA_from_SP. Hence the function gsw_SA_from_SP is perhaps the most fundamental
of the GSW functions as it is the gateway leading from oceanographic measurements to all
the thermodynamic properties of seawater under TEOS-10. A call to this function can be
avoided only if one is willing to ignore the influence of the spatial variations in the
composition of seawater on seawater properties (such as density and specific volume). If
this is indeed the intention, then the remaining GSW functions must be called with the
salinity argument being Reference Salinity S R , and most definitely, not with Practical
Salinity S P . Reference Salinity S R can be obtained from the function gsw_SR_from_SP.
The gsw_SA_from_SP(SP,p,long,lat) function first interpolates the global Absolute
Salinity Anomaly Ratio ( Rδ ) data set using the internal GSW library function gsw_SAAR to
the (p,long,lat) location. gsw_SA_from_SP then uses this interpolated value of Rδ to
calculate Absolute Salinity S A according to (see Eqn. (A.5.10) of appendix A.5 of the
TEOS-10 Manual, IOC et al. (2010) and McDougall et al. (2012))
35.165 04 g kg −1
SA =
35
(
SP 1 + Rδ . ) Non-Baltic (1)

( )
In this expression 35.165 04 g kg −1 35 SP is the Reference Salinity S R , which is the best
estimate of Absolute Salinity of a Standard Seawater sample.
Eqn. (1) is the value of Absolute Salinity returned by gsw_SA_from_SP unless the
function detects that the location is in the Baltic Sea (where incidentally the internal GSW
library function gsw_SAAR returns a value of Rδ of zero). If the observation is from the
Baltic Sea, the Absolute Salinity Anomaly δ SA is calculated according to
SA − SR = 0.087 g kg −1 × (1 − SP 35) (from Eqn. (A.5.16) of IOC et al. (2010), following Feistel et
al. (2010)), so that Absolute Salinity S A is given by

SA =
(35.165 04 − 0.087 ) g kg −1
SP + 0.087 g kg −1 . Baltic Sea (2)
35
In summary, the gsw_SA_from_SP function returns either Eqn. (1) or Eqn. (2)
depending on whether the longitude and latitude of the sample put the observation outside
or inside the Baltic Sea. Since Practical Salinity should always be positive but there are
sometimes a few negative values from a CTD, any negative input values of S P to this
function gsw_SA_from_SP are set to zero.
If the latitude and longitude are such as to place the observation well away from the
ocean, a flag ‘in_ocean’ is set to zero as a warning, otherwise it is 1. This flag is only set
when the observation is well and truly on dry land; often the warning flag is not set until
6 Getting Started with TEOS-10

one is several hundred kilometers inland from the coast. When the function detects that the
observation is not from the ocean, Rδ is set equal to zero and gsw_SA_from_SP returns
( )
SA = SR = 35.165 04 g kg −1 35 SP in accordance with Eqn. (1).
The largest influence of the variable seawater composition occurs in the northern North
Pacific where SA − SR = δ SA is as large as 0.027 g kg −1 (see Figure 2 of IOC et al. (2010)
which is reproduced below), this being the difference between Absolute Salinity and the
estimate of Absolute Salinity which can be made on the basis of Practical Salinity alone. This
increment of salinity equates to an increment of density of approximately 0.020 kg m −3.

Figure 2 (a). Absolute Salinity Anomaly δ SA at p = 2000 dbar.

Figure 2 (b). A vertical section of Absolute Salinity

Anomaly δ SA along 180oE in the Pacific Ocean.
 Getting started with TEOS-10 7

In order to gauge the importance of the spatial variation of seawater composition, the
northward gradient of density at constant pressure is reproduced below from Fig. A.5.1 of
IOC et al. (2010) for the data in a world ocean hydrographic atlas deeper than 1000m. The
vertical axis in this figure is the magnitude of the difference between the northward density
gradient at constant pressure when the TEOS-10 algorithm for density is called with S A (as
it should be) compared with calling the same TEOS-10 density algorithm with SR as the
salinity argument. Figure A.5.1 shows that the “thermal wind” is misestimated by more
than 2% for 58% of the data in the world ocean below a depth of 1000m if the effects of the
variable seawater composition are ignored. When this same comparison is done for only the
North Pacific, it is found that 60% of the data deeper than 1000m has “thermal wind”
misestimated by more than 10% if S R is used in place of S A .
The first version of gsw_SA_from_SP was made available in January 2009 (then called
gsw_ASal). The second version (version 2.0) was released in October 2010 and superseded
version 1. The third version (version 3.0) was released in May 2011 and supersedes version
2.0. This is unchanged in version 3.05 which was released in March 2015.

Figure A.5.1. The northward density gradient at constant pressure (the horizontal axis)
for data in the global ocean atlas of Gouretski and Koltermann (2004) for
p > 1000 dbar. The vertical axis is the magnitude of the difference
between evaluating the density gradient using S A versus S R as the
salinity argument in the TEOS-10 expression for density.

As discussed in Pawlowicz (2010), Wright et al. (2011) and IOC et al. (2010), there are
actually several contenders for the title of the “absolute salinity” of seawater, namely
“Solution Salinity”, “Added-Mass Salinity”, and “Density Salinity”. The paper of Wright et
al. (2011) presents a clear and readable account of this difficult subject, however the nuances
surrounding these different definitions of absolute salinity need not concern most physical
oceanographers. Under TEOS-10 the words Absolute Salinity and symbol S A are reserved
for “Density Salinity” such as can be deduced using laboratory measurements with a
vibrating beam densimeter.
8 Getting Started with TEOS-10

4. Preformed Salinity S*
Absolute Salinity S A , Reference Salinity S R and Practical Salinity S P are all
conservative salinity variables under the processes of (i) adiabatic pressure changes, and (ii)
turbulent mixing, but none of these three salinity variables are conservative in the presence
of (iii) biogeochemical processes. Preformed Salinity S* is designed to be a conservative
salinity variable which is unaffected by biogeochemical activity in the ocean; it is defined as
Absolute Salinity less the contributions of biogeochemical processes to Absolute Salinity.
The gsw_Sstar_from_SP(SP,p,long,lat) function first interpolates the global Absolute
Salinity Anomaly Ratio ( Rδ ) data set using the internal GSW library function gsw_SAAR to
the (p,long,lat) location. gsw_Sstar_from_SP then uses this interpolated value of Rδ to
calculate Preformed Salinity S* according to (see Eqn. (A.5.11) of appendix A.5 of the TEOS-
10 Manual, IOC et al. (2010))
35.165 04 g kg −1
S* =
35
(
SP 1 − r1Rδ , ) Non-Baltic (3)

where r1 is taken to be the constant 0.35 based on the work of Pawlowicz et al. (2011). Note
( )
that 35.165 04 g kg −1 35 SP is Reference Salinity S R which is the best estimate of Absolute
Salinity for a Standard Seawater sample. The figure below (from Figure A.4.1 of the TEOS-
10 Manual, IOC et al., 2010) illustrates the relationships between Preformed Salinity S* ,
Reference Salinity S R and Absolute Salinity S A .

Figure A.4.1. Number line of salinity, illustrating the differences between

Preformed Salinity S* , Reference Salinity S R , and Absolute
Salinity S A for seawater whose composition differs from that
of Standard Seawater.

Equation (3) is the value of Preformed Salinity S* returned by gsw_Sstar_from_SP

unless the function detects that the location is in the Baltic Sea (where incidentally the
internal GSW library function gsw_SAAR returns a value of Rδ of zero). In the Baltic Sea
the deviations of Absolute Salinity from Reference Salinity are not due to non-conservative
biogeochemical processes but rather are due to the anomalous composition entering the
Baltic from rivers. Since these anomalous constituents are conservative, Preformed Salinity
S* in the Baltic Sea is Absolute Salinity S A . Hence, if the observation is from the Baltic Sea,
Preformed Salinity S* is calculated using the relation SA − SR = 0.087 g kg −1 × (1 − SP 35)
(from Eqn. (A.5.6) of IOC et al. (2010), following Feistel et al. (2010)), so that

S* = SA =
(35.165 04 − 0.087 ) g kg −1
SP + 0.087 g kg −1 . Baltic Sea (4)
35
In summary, the gsw_Sstar_from_SP function returns either Eqn. (3) or Eqn. (4)
depending on whether the longitude and latitude of the sample put the observation outside
or inside the Baltic Sea. Since Practical Salinity should always be positive but there are
sometimes be a few negative values from a CTD, any negative input values of S P to this
function gsw_Sstar_from_SP are set to zero.
 Getting started with TEOS-10 9

If the latitude and longitude are such as to place the observation well away from the
ocean, a flag ‘in_ocean’ is set to zero as a warning, otherwise it is 1. This flag is only set
when the observation is well and truly on dry land; often the warning flag is not set until
one is several hundred kilometers inland from the coast. When the function detects that the
observation is not from the ocean, Rδ is set equal to zero and gsw_Sstar_from_SP returns
( )
S* = SR = 35.165 04 g kg −1 35 SP in accordance with Eqn. (3).
The largest influence of the variable seawater composition occurs in the northern North
Pacific where S R − S* is almost 0.01 g kg −1 , and the difference between Absolute Salinity and
the conservative Preformed Salinity, S A − S* , is as large as 0.036 g kg −1 , equivalent to an
increment of density of approximately 0.028 kg m−3 .
Continuing to concentrate on the mid-depth northern North Pacific, recall that the
salinity difference SA − SR = δ SA of 0.027 g kg −1 represents the difference between Absolute
Salinity and the estimate of it using only Practical Salinity, while the value of S A − S* of
0.036 g kg −1 is the total influence of biogeochemical processes on Absolute Salinity. An
ocean model which treats its salinity variable as being conservative needs to account for this
salinity difference, S A − S* , before density and the “thermal wind” can be accurately
calculated. The reason why the salinity differences SA − SR and S A − S* are not equal is that
biogeochemical processes have an effect on the conductivity of seawater and therefore on
Practical Salinity and Reference Salinity.
What then is the appropriate use of Preformed Salinity S* ? This salinity variable is the
one which can be treated as being conservative. Hence, in contrast to the evolution equation
of Absolute Salinity S A , the evolution equation for Preformed Salinity S* does not contain
non-conservative source terms caused by biogeochemistry (see appendix A.20 of IOC et al.
(2010)). This means that Preformed Salinity S* is ideal for use as
(i) the salinity variable that is advected and diffused in forward ocean models,
(ii) the salinity variable that is advected and diffused in inverse ocean models, and
(iii) the salinity variable that is averaged when forming a hydrographic atlas.
In these applications, the salinity difference SA − S* is added to the averaged atlas or model
salinity variable to form Absolute Salinity S A before other thermodynamic properties (such
as density etc.) are calculated. Because of its conservative nature, there is an argument that
suggests that Preformed Salinity S* should be used in place of Absolute Salinity S A as the
salinity axis of the SA − Θ diagram, since water masses are notionally mixed on this
diagram. However, to do so would take away the ability to draw isolines of potential
density on this diagram, so the SA − Θ diagram (as opposed to the S* − Θ diagram) is
recommended for water-mass analysis.
10 Getting Started with TEOS-10

5. Conservative Temperature Θ
Because the TEOS-10 properties of seawater are all derived from a Gibbs function, it is
possible to find thermodynamic properties such as enthalpy, internal energy and entropy.
Hence potential enthalpy and Conservative Temperature (which is simply proportional to
potential enthalpy) are readily available.
Conservative Temperature is in some respects quite similar to potential temperature in
that the same artificial thought experiment is involved with their definitions. In both cases
one takes a seawater sample at an arbitrary pressure in the ocean and one imagines
decreasing the pressure on the seawater parcel in an adiabatic and isohaline manner until
the sea pressure p = 0 dbar is reached. The temperature of the fluid parcel at the end of this
artificial thought experiment is defined to be the potential temperature θ . Similarly, the
enthalpy at the end of this artificial thought experiment is defined to be the potential
enthalpy h0 , and Conservative Temperature Θ is simply potential enthalpy divided by the
fixed “heat capacity” c0p ≡ 3991.867 957 119 63 J kg −1 K −1 .
Conservative Temperature Θ represents the “heat content” of seawater much more
accurately than does potential temperature θ (McDougall (2003), Graham and McDougall,
2013). Θ can be evaluated from in situ temperature t from the function gsw_CT_from_t.
The difference between potential temperature and Conservative Temperature can be as large
as θ − Θ = −1.4°C but is more typically no more than ± 0.1°C (see Figure A.17.1 of IOC et
al. (2010) which is reproduced below). To put a temperature difference of 0.1°C in context,
this is the typical difference between in situ and potential temperatures for a pressure
difference of 1000 dbar, and it is approximately 40 times as large as the typical differences
between t90 and t68 in the ocean.

Figure A.17.1. Contours (in °C ) of the difference between potential temperature

and Conservative Temperature θ − Θ . This plot illustrates the non-
conservative production of potential temperature θ in the ocean.
 Getting started with TEOS-10 11

The air-sea heat flux is exactly proportional to the flux of Conservative Temperature,
and because Θ is almost a perfectly conservative variable, the meridional “heat” flux is very
accurately given by the meridional flux of Θ (as opposed to the meridional flux of potential
temperature). Also, the parameterized lateral diffusion of “heat” along neutral tangent
planes can be more than 1% different when such lateral diffusive heat fluxes are estimated
using gradients of potential temperature rather than gradients of Conservative Temperature
(see Figure A.14.1 of IOC et al. (2010) which is reproduced below).
For these reasons Conservative Temperature Θ is the appropriate temperature variable
to be used in ocean analyses. Just as Absolute Salinity S A is now to be used in
oceanographic publications instead of Practical Salinity, so too Conservative Temperature Θ
takes the place of potential temperature θ under TEOS-10.

( )
Figure A.14.1. Contours of ∇nθ ∇n Θ − 1 × 100% at p = 0 , showing the percentage
difference between the epineutral gradients of θ and Θ . The red dots
are from the global ocean atlas of Gouretski and Koltermann (2004) at
p = 0.
12 Getting Started with TEOS-10

6. Which types of salinity and temperature should be archived?

Since 1978 we have gone to sea and collected and then archived Practical Salinity SP
(PSS-78), in situ temperature t (now ITS-90) and pressure p at known values of longitude,
latitude and time. Under TEOS-10, nothing about this data collection and storage changes.
Our instruments still need to measure properly calibrated data of ( SP , t , p ) at known
longitude, latitude and time. These are also exactly the same data that should continue to be
archived in national oceanographic archives.
In particular, it cannot be over-emphasized that NONE of Reference Salinity S R ,
Absolute Salinity S A or Preformed Salinity S* should EVER be submitted to or stored in
national oceanographic databases. This resonates with the practice under EOS-80 regarding
temperature; we archive the measured quantity, in situ temperature t , not the calculated
quantity, potential temperature θ . Similarly, just as potential temperature is not stored in
national databases, so too Conservative Temperature should NEVER be submitted to or
stored in such national databases. In short, such databases should store measured (not
calculated) quantities, and for this purpose, Practical Salinity is regarded as a measured
quantity.
 Getting started with TEOS-10 13

7. The 75-term expression v̂ ( SA ,Θ, p ) for specific volume

( )
The computationally efficient 75-term polynomial for specific volume, v̂ SA ,Θ, p , is
described in Roquet et al. (2015), and is the function gsw_specvol(SA,CT,p) in the GSW
Oceanographic Toolbox. Seawater specific volume data was fitted in a “funnel” of data
( )
points in SA , Θ, p space which is described in more detail in McDougall et al. (2003). The
“funnel” extends to a pressure of 8000 dbar . At the sea surface the “funnel” covers the full
range of temperature and salinity while for pressures greater than 6500 dbar, the maximum
Conservative Temperature of the fitted data is 10°C and the minimum Absolute Salinity is
30 g kg −1 . That is, the 75-term fit has been performed over a region of parameter space
which includes water that is approximately 10°C warmer and 5 g kg −1 fresher in the deep
ocean than the seawater which exists in the present ocean.
The rms error of this 75-term approximation to the TEOS-10 density over the
oceanographic “funnel” is 0.0002 kg m −3 ; this can be compared with the rms uncertainty of
0.004 kg m−3 of the underlying laboratory density data to which the TEOS-10 Gibbs function
was fitted. Similarly, the appropriate thermal expansion coefficient,
1 ∂v
αΘ = ,
v ∂Θ S
A, p

of the 75-term equation of state is different from the same thermal expansion coefficient
evaluated directly from TEOS-10 with an rms error in the “funnel” of 0.03x10−6 K −1 ,
compared with the rms error of the thermal expansion coefficient of the laboratory data to
which the Feistel (2008) Gibbs function was fitted of 0.73 x10−6 K −1 . In terms of the
evaluation of density gradients, the haline contraction coefficient evaluated from the 75-term
equation is many times more accurate than the thermal expansion coefficient.
In dynamical oceanography it is the thermal expansion and haline contraction
coefficients α Θ and β Θ which are the most important aspects of the equation of state since
the “thermal wind” is proportional to α Θ∇ p Θ − β Θ∇ p SA and the vertical static stability is
given in terms of the buoyancy frequency N by g −1 N 2 = α Θ Θ z − β Θ (SA ) z . Hence for
dynamical oceanography the 75-term polynomial expression for specific volume retains
essentially the full accuracy of TEOS-10. The use of the 75-term polynomial expression for
specific volume has several advantages over using the exact formulation, namely
• it is a function of Conservative Temperature, so eliminating the need to be
continually converting between Conservative and in-situ temperatures in order
to evaluate density,
• it is computationally faster (by a factor of 4) to use the 75-term expression
gsw_specvol(SA,CT,p) rather than using gsw_specvol_CT_exact(SA,CT,p)
which is based on the sum of the Gibbs functions of pure water (IAPWS-09) and
of sea salt (IAPWS-08),
• ocean models will use this 75-term equation of state, and it is advantageous for
the fields of observational and theoretical oceanography to use the same
equation of state as ocean models.

The functions of the GSW Oceanographic Toolbox are listed on the next four pages, after
which section 8 begins on page 18.
 Page 1. GSW version 3.06.12

Gibbs SeaWater (GSW) Oceanographic Toolbox of TEOS –10

Practical Salinity (SP), PSS-78 specific volume, density and enthalpy
gsw_SP_from_C Practical Salinity from conductivity, C (incl. for SP < 2) gsw_specvol specific volume
gsw_C_from_SP conductivity, C, from Practical Salinity (incl. for SP < 2) gsw_alpha thermal expansion coefficient with respect to CT
gsw_SP_from_R Practical Salinity from conductivity ratio, R (incl. for SP < 2) gsw_beta saline contraction coefficient at constant CT
gsw_R_from_SP conductivity ratio, R, from Practical Salinity (incl. for SP < 2) gsw_alpha_on_beta alpha divided by beta
gsw_SP_salinometer Practical Salinity from a laboratory salinometer (incl. for SP < 2) gsw_specvol_alpha_beta specific volume, thermal expansion and saline contraction coefficients
gsw_SP_from_SK Practical Salinity from Knudsen Salinity gsw_specvol_first_derivatives first derivatives of specific volume
gsw_specvol_second_derivatives second derivatives of specific volume
Absolute Salinity (SA), Preformed Salinity (Sstar) and Conservative Temperature (CT) gsw_specvol_first_derivatives_wrt_enthalpy first derivatives of specific volume with respect to enthalpy
gsw_specvol_second_derivatives_wrt_enthalpy second derivatives of specific volume with respect to enthalpy
gsw_SA_from_SP Absolute Salinity from Practical Salinity
gsw_specvol_anom specific volume anomaly
gsw_Sstar_from_SP Preformed Salinity from Practical Salinity
gsw_specvol_anom_standard specific volume anomaly realtive to SSO & 0°C
gsw_CT_from_t Conservative Temperature from in-situ temperature
gsw_rho in-situ density and potential density
gsw_rho_alpha_beta in-situ density, thermal expansion and saline contraction coefficients
Absolute Salinity – Conservative Temperature plotting function gsw_rho_first_derivatives first derivatives of density
gsw_SA_CT_plot function to plot Absolute Salinity – Conservative Temperature gsw_rho_second_derivatives second derivatives of density
profiles on the SA-CT diagram, including the freezing line gsw_rho_first_derivatives_wrt_enthalpy first derivatives of density with respect to enthalpy
and selected potential density contours gsw_rho_second_derivatives_wrt_enthalpy second derivatives of density with respect to enthalpy
gsw_sigma0 sigma0 with reference pressure of 0 dbar
other conversions between temperatures, salinities, entropy, pressure and height gsw_sigma1 sigma1 with reference pressure of 1000 dbar
gsw_deltaSA_from_SP Absolute Salinity Anomaly from Practical Salinity gsw_sigma2 sigma2 with reference pressure of 2000 dbar
gsw_SA_Sstar_from_SP Absolute Salinity & Preformed Salinity from Practical Salinity gsw_sigma3 sigma3 with reference pressure of 3000 dbar
gsw_SR_from_SP Reference Salinity from Practical Salinity gsw_sigma4 sigma4 with reference pressure of 4000 dbar
gsw_SP_from_SR Practical Salinity from Reference Salinity gsw_cabbeling cabbeling coefficient
gsw_SP_from_SA Practical Salinity from Absolute Salinity gsw_thermobaric thermobaric coefficient
gsw_Sstar_from_SA Preformed Salinity from Absolute Salinity gsw_enthalpy enthalpy
gsw_SA_from_Sstar Absolute Salinity from Preformed Salinity gsw_enthalpy_diff difference of enthalpy between two pressures
gsw_SP_from_Sstar Practical Salinity from Preformed Salinity gsw_dynamic_enthalpy dynamic enthalpy
gsw_pt_from_CT potential temperature from Conservative Temperature gsw_enthalpy_first_derivatives first derivatives of enthalpy
gsw_t_from_CT in-situ temperature from Conservative Temperature gsw_enthalpy_second_derivatives second derivatives of enthalpy
gsw_CT_from_pt Conservative Temperature from potential temperature gsw_sound_speed sound speed
gsw_pot_enthalpy_from_pt potential enthalpy from potential temperature gsw_kappa isentropic compressibility
gsw_pt_from_t potential temperature gsw_internal_energy internal energy
gsw_pt0_from_t potential temperature with reference pressure of 0 dbar gsw_internal_energy_first_derivatives first derivatives of internal energy
gsw_t_from_pt0 in-situ temperature from potential temperature with p_ref of 0 dbar gsw_internal_energy_second_derivatives second derivatives of internal energy
gsw_t90_from_t48 ITS-90 temperature from IPTS-48 temperature gsw_CT_from_enthalpy Conservative Temperature from enthalpy
gsw_t90_from_t68 ITS-90 temperature from IPTS-68 temperature gsw_SA_from_rho Absolute Salinity from density
gsw_z_from_p height from pressure gsw_CT_from_rho Conservative Temperature from density
gsw_p_from_z pressure from height gsw_CT_maxdensity Conservative Temperature of maximum density of seawater
gsw_z_from_depth height from depth
gsw_depth_from_z depth from height
gsw_Abs_Pressure_from_p Absolute Pressure, P, from sea pressure, p
gsw_p_from_Abs_Pressure sea pressure, p, from Absolute Pressure, P
gsw_entropy_from_CT entropy from Conservative Temperature
gsw_CT_from_entropy Conservative Temperature from entropy
gsw_entropy_from_pt entropy from potential temperature
gsw_pt_from_entropy potential temperature from entropy
gsw_entropy_from_t entropy from in-situ temperature
gsw_t_from_entropy in-situ temperature from entropy
gsw_adiabatic_lapse_rate_from_CT adiabatic lapse rate from Conservative Temperature
gsw_adiabatic_lapse_rate_from_t adiabatic lapse rate from in-situ temperature
gsw_molality_from_SA molality of seawater
gsw_ionic_strength_from_SA ionic strength of seawater
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Gibbs SeaWater (GSW) Oceanographic Toolbox of TEOS –10

vertical stability and interpolation thermodynamic interaction between ice and seawater
gsw_Turner_Rsubrho Turner angle & Rsubrho gsw_melting_ice_SA_CT_ratio SA to CT ratio when ice melts into seawater
gsw_Nsquared buoyancy (Brunt-Väisäla) frequency squared (N2) gsw_melting_ice_SA_CT_ratio_poly SA to CT ratio when ice melts into seawater (poly)
gsw_Nsquared_min minimum buoyancy frequency squared (N2) gsw_melting_ice_equilibrium_SA_CT_ratio SA to CT ratio when ice melts, near equilibrium
gsw_stabilise_SA_const_t minimally adjust SA to produce a stable water column, gsw_melting_ice_equilibrium_SA_CT_ratio_poly SA to CT ratio when ice melts, near equilibrium (poly)
keeping in-situ temperature constant gsw_ice_fraction_to_freeze_seawater ice mass fraction to freeze seawater
gsw_stabilise_SA_CT minimally adjusts SA & CT to produce a stable water column gsw_melting_ice_into_seawater SA and CT when ice melts in seawater
gsw_mlp mixed-layer pressure gsw_frazil_ratios_adiabatic ratios of SA, CT and P changes during frazil ice formation
gsw_Nsquared_lowerlimit specified profile of minimum buoyancy frequency squared gsw_frazil_ratios_adiabatic_poly ratios of SA, CT and P changes during frazil ice formation (poly)
gsw_SA_CT_interp interpolates SA & CT to defined pressures gsw_frazil_properties SA, CT & ice mass fraction from bulk SA & bulk enthalpy
gsw_t_interp interpolates in-situ temperature to defined pressures gsw_frazil_properties_potential SA, CT & ice fraction from bulk SA & bulk potential enthalpy
gsw_tracer_CT_interp interpolates a tracer & CT to defined pressures gsw_frazil_properties_potential_poly SA, CT & ice fraction from bulk SA & bulk potential enthalpy (poly)
gsw_tracer_interp interpolates a tracer to defined pressures
gsw_IPV_vs_fNsquared_ratio ratio of isopycnal potential vorticity to f times N2
thermodynamic interaction between sea ice and seawater
gsw_melting_seaice_SA_CT_ratio SA to CT ratio when sea ice melts into seawater
geostrophic streamfunctions, acoustic travel time and geostrophic velocity gsw_melting_seaice_SA_CT_ratio_poly SA to CT ratio when sea ice melts into seawater (poly)
gsw_melting_seaice_equilibrium_SA_CT_ratio SA to CT ratio when sea ice melts, near equilibrium
gsw_geo_strf_dyn_height dynamic height anomaly
gsw_melting_seaice_equilibrium_SA_CT_ratio_poly SA to CT ratio when sea ice melts, near equilibrium (poly)
gsw_geo_strf_dyn_height_pc dynamic height anomaly for piecewise constant profiles
gsw_seaice_fraction_to_freeze_seawater sea ice mass fraction to freeze seawater
gsw_geo_strf_isopycnal approximate isopycnal geostrophic streamfunction
gsw_melting_seaice_into_seawater SA and CT when sea ice melts into seawater
gsw_geo_strf_isopycnal_pc approximate isopycnal geostrophic streamfunction for
piecewise constant profiles
gsw_geo_strf_Cunningham Cunningham geostrophic streamfunction
gsw_geo_strf_Montgomery Montgomery geostrophic streamfunction thermodynamic properties of ice Ih
gsw_geo_strf_steric_height dynamic height anomaly divided by 9.7963 m s-2 gsw_specvol_ice specific volume of ice
gsw_geo_strf_PISH pressure integrated steric height gsw_alpha_wrt_t_ice thermal expansion coefficient of ice with respect to in-situ temp
gsw_rho_ice in-situ density of ice
gsw_travel_time acoustic travel time
gsw_geostrophic_velocity geostrophic velocity gsw_pressure_coefficient_ice pressure coefficient of ice
gsw_sound_speed_ice sound speed of ice (compression waves)
gsw_kappa_ice isentropic compressibility of ice
gsw_kappa_const_t_ice isothermal compressibility of ice
seawater and ice properties at freezing temperatures gsw_internal_energy_ice internal energy of ice
gsw_CT_freezing Conservative Temperature freezing temp of seawater gsw_enthalpy_ice enthalpy of ice
gsw_CT_freezing_poly Conservative Temperature freezing temp of seawater (poly) gsw_entropy_ice entropy of ice
gsw_t_freezing in-situ freezing temperature of seawater gsw_cp_ice isobaric heat capacity of ice
gsw_t_freezing_poly in-situ freezing temperature of seawater (poly) gsw_chem_potential_water_ice chemical potential of water in ice
gsw_pot_enthalpy_ice_freezing potential enthalpy of ice at which seawater freezes gsw_Helmholtz_energy_ice Helmholtz energy of ice
gsw_pot_enthalpy_ice_freezing_poly potential enthalpy of ice at which seawater freezes (poly) gsw_adiabatic_lapse_rate_ice adiabatic lapse rate of ice
gsw_SA_freezing_from_CT SA of seawater at the freezing temp (for given CT) gsw_pt0_from_t_ice potential temperature of ice with reference pressure of 0 dbar
gsw_SA_freezing_from_CT_poly SA of seawater at the freezing temp (for given CT) (poly) gsw_pt_from_t_ice potential temperature of ice
gsw_SA_freezing_from_t SA of seawater at the freezing temp (for given t) gsw_t_from_pt0_ice in-situ temp from potential temp of ice with p_ref of 0 dbar
gsw_SA_freezing_from_t_poly SA of seawater at the freezing temp (for given t) (poly) gsw_t_from_rho_ice in-situ temp from density of ice
gsw_pressure_freezing_CT pressure of seawater at the freezing temp (for given CT) gsw_pot_enthalpy_from_pt_ice potential enthalpy from potential temperature of ice
gsw_CT_freezing_first_derivatives first derivatives of CT freezing temp of seawater gsw_pt_from_pot_enthalpy_ice potential temperature from potential enthalpy of ice
gsw_CT_freezing_first_derivatives_poly first derivatives of CT freezing temp of seawater (poly) gsw_pot_enthalpy_from_pt_ice_poly potential enthalpy from potential temperature of ice (poly)
gsw_t_freezing_first_derivatives first derivatives of in-situ freezing temp of seawater gsw_pt_from_pot_enthalpy_ice_poly potential temperature from potential enthalpy of ice (poly)
gsw_t_freezing_first_derivatives_poly first derivatives of in-situ freezing temp of seawater (poly) gsw_pot_enthalpy_from_specvol_ice potential enthalpy from specific volume of ice
gsw_pot_enthalpy_ice_freezing_first_derivatives first derivatives of potential enthalpy of ice at freezing gsw_specvol_from_pot_enthalpy_ice specific volume from potential enthalpy of ice
gsw_pot_enthalpy_ice_freezing_first_derivatives_poly first derivatives of potential enthalpy of ice at freezing (poly) gsw_pot_enthalpy_from_specvol_ice_poly potential enthalpy from specific volume of ice (poly)
gsw_latentheat_melting latent heat of melting of ice into seawater gsw_specvol_from_pot_enthalpy_ice_poly specific volume from potential enthalpy of ice (poly)
 Page 3. GSW version 3.06.12

Gibbs SeaWater (GSW) Oceanographic Toolbox of TEOS –10

isobaric evaporation enthalpy specific volume, density and enthalpy in terms of CT, based on the exact Gibbs function
gsw_latentheat_evap_CT latent heat of evaporation of water from seawater (isobaric gsw_specvol_CT_exact specific volume
evaporation enthalpy) with CT as input temperature gsw_alpha_CT_exact thermal expansion coefficient with respect to CT
gsw_latentheat_evap_t latent heat of evaporation of water from seawater (isobaric gsw_beta_CT_exact saline contraction coefficient at constant CT
evaporation enthalpy) with in-situ temperature, t, as input gsw_alpha_on_beta_CT_exact alpha divided by beta
gsw_specvol_alpha_beta_CT_exact specific volume, thermal expansion and saline
spiciness contraction coefficients
gsw_spiciness0 spiciness with reference pressure of 0 dbar gsw_specvol_first_derivatives_CT_exact first derivatives of specific volume
gsw_spiciness1 spiciness with reference pressure of 1000 dbar gsw_specvol_second_derivatives_CT_exact second derivatives of specific volume
gsw_spiciness2 spiciness with reference pressure of 2000 dbar gsw_specvol_first_derivatives_wrt_enthalpy_CT_exact first derivatives of specific volume with respect
gsw_SA_CT_from_sigma0_spiciness0 SA & CT from given sigma and spiciness with p_ref of 0 dbar to enthalpy
gsw_specvol_second_derivatives_wrt_enthalpy_CT_exact second derivatives of specific volume with respect
gsw_SA_CT_from_sigma1_spiciness1 SA & CT from given sigma and spiciness with p_ref of 1000 dbar
to enthalpy
gsw_SA_CT_from_sigma2_spiciness2 SA & CT from given sigma and spiciness with p_ref of 2000 dbar
gsw_specvol_anom_CT_exact specific volume anomaly
gsw_specvol_anom_standard_CT_exact specific volume anomaly realtive to SSO & 0°C
neutral versus isopycnal slopes and ratios gsw_rho_CT_exact in-situ density and potential density
gsw_isopycnal_slope_ratio ratio of the slopes of isopycnals on the SA-CT diagram for gsw_rho_alpha_beta_CT_exact in-situ density, thermal expansion and saline
p & p_ref contraction coefficients
gsw_isopycnal_vs_ntp_CT_ratio ratio of the gradient of CT in a potential density surface to gsw_rho_first_derivatives_CT_exact first derivatives of density
that in the neutral tangent plane gsw_rho_second_derivatives_CT_exact second derivatives of density
gsw_ntp_pt_vs_CT_ratio ratio of gradients of pt & CT in a neutral tangent plane gsw_rho_first_derivatives_wrt_enthalpy_CT_exact first derivatives of density with respect to enthalpy
gsw_rho_second_derivatives_wrt_enthalpy_CT_exact second derivatives of density with respect to enthalpy
derivatives of entropy, CT and pt gsw_sigma0_CT_exact sigma0 with reference pressure of 0 dbar
gsw_CT_first_derivatives first derivatives of Conservative Temperature gsw_sigma1_CT_exact sigma1 with reference pressure of 1000 dbar
gsw_CT_second_derivatives second derivatives of Conservative Temperature gsw_sigma2_CT_exact sigma2 with reference pressure of 2000 dbar
gsw_entropy_first_derivatives first derivatives of entropy gsw_sigma3_CT_exact sigma3 with reference pressure of 3000 dbar
gsw_entropy_second_derivatives second derivatives of entropy gsw_sigma4_CT_exact sigma4 with reference pressure of 4000 dbar
gsw_pt_first_derivatives first derivatives of potential temperature gsw_cabbeling_CT_exact cabbeling coefficient
gsw_pt_second_derivatives second derivatives of potential temperature gsw_thermobaric_CT_exact thermobaric coefficient
gsw_enthalpy_CT_exact enthalpy
planet Earth properties gsw_enthalpy_diff_CT_exact difference of enthalpy between two pressures
gsw_dynamic_enthalpy_CT_exact dynamic enthalpy
gsw_f Coriolis parameter
gsw_enthalpy_first_derivatives_CT_exact first derivatives of enthalpy
gsw_grav gravitational acceleration
gsw_enthalpy_second_derivatives_CT_exact second derivatives of enthalpy
gsw_distance spherical earth distance between points in the ocean
gsw_sound_speed_CT_exact sound speed
gsw_kappa_CT_exact isentropic compressibility
TEOS–10 constants gsw_internal_energy_CT_exact internal energy
gsw_T0 Celsius zero point; 273.15 K gsw_internal_energy_first_derivatives_CT_exact first derivatives of internal energy
gsw_P0 one standard atmosphere; 101 325 Pa gsw_internal_energy_second_derivatives_CT_exact second derivatives of internal energy
gsw_SSO Standard Ocean Reference Salinity; 35.165 04 g/kg gsw_CT_from_enthalpy_exact Conservative Temperature from enthalpy
gsw_uPS unit conversion factor for salinities; (35.165 04/35) g/kg gsw_SA_from_rho_CT_exact Absolute Salinity from density
gsw_cp0 the “specific heat” for use with CT; 3991.867 957 119 63 (J/kg)/K gsw_CT_from_rho_exact Conservative Temperature from density
gsw_C3515 conductivity of SSW at SP=35, t_68=15, p=0; 42.9140 mS/cm gsw_CT_maxdensity_exact Conservative Temperature of maximum density
gsw_SonCl ratio of SP to Chlorinity; 1.80655 (g/kg) -1 of seawater
gsw_valence_factor valence factor of sea salt; 1.2452898
gsw_atomic_weight mole-weighted atomic weight of sea salt; 31.4038218... g/mol

laboratory functions, for use with densimeter measurements

gsw_SA_from_rho_t_exact Absolute Salinity from density
gsw_deltaSA_from_rho_t_exact Absolute Salinity Anomaly from density
gsw_rho_t_exact in-situ density
 Page 4. GSW version [Link]

Gibbs SeaWater (GSW) Oceanographic Toolbox of TEOS –10

dissolved gasses Library functions of the GSW toolbox (internal functions; not intended to be called by users)
gsw_Arsol argon solubility from SA and CT The GSW functions call the following library functions:
gsw_Arsol_SP_pt argon solubility from SP and pt
gsw_Hesol helium solubility from SA and CT gsw_gibbs the TEOS-10 Gibbs function of seawater and its derivatives
gsw_Hesol_SP_pt helium solubility from SP and pt gsw_gibbs_ice the TEOS-10 Gibbs function of ice and its derivatives
gsw_Krsol krypton solubility from SA and CT gsw_SAAR Absolute Salinity Anomaly Ratio (excluding the Baltic Sea)
gsw_Krsol_SP_pt krypton solubility from SP and pt gsw_Fdelta ratio of Absolute to Preformed Salinity, minus 1
gsw_N2sol nitrogen solubility from SA and CT gsw_deltaSA_atlas Absolute Salinity Anomaly atlas value (excluding the Baltic Sea)
gsw_N2sol_SP_pt nitrogen solubility from SP and pt gsw_SA_from_SP_Baltic calculates Absolute Salinity in the Baltic Sea
gsw_Nesol neon solubility from SA and CT gsw_SP_from_SA_Baltic calculates Practical Salinity in the Baltic Sea
gsw_Nesol_SP_pt neon solubility from SP and pt gsw_infunnel “oceanographic funnel” check for the 75-term equation
gsw_O2sol oxygen solubility from SA and CT gsw_entropy_part entropy minus the terms that are a function of only SA
gsw_O2sol_SP_pt oxygen solubility from SP and pt gsw_entropy_part_zerop entropy_part evaluated at 0 dbar
gsw_quadprog quadratic solver for water column stabilisation
gsw_wiggliness amount of variation in a cast
basic thermodynamic properties in terms of in-situ t, based on the exact Gibbs function gsw_data_interp Barker & McDougall (2020) MR-pchip interpolation
gsw_specvol_t_exact specific volume gsw_interp_ref_cast linearly interpolates the reference cast
gsw_alpha_wrt_CT_t_exact thermal expansion coefficient with respect to Conservative gsw_linear_interp_SA_CT linearly interpolates (SA,CT,p) to the desired p
Temperature gsw_pchip_interp_SA_CT pchip interpolation of (SA,CT,p) to the desired p
gsw_alpha_wrt_pt_t_exact thermal expansion coefficient with respect to potential temperature gsw_rr68_interp_SA_CT Reiniger & Ross (1968) interpolation of (SA,CT,p) to the desired p
gsw_alpha_wrt_t_exact thermal expansion coefficient with respect to in-situ temperature gsw_spline_interp_SA_CT spline interpolation of (SA,CT,p) to the desired p
gsw_beta_const_CT_t_exact saline contraction coefficient at constant Conservative Temperature gsw_gibbs_pt0_pt0 gibbs(0,2,0,SA,t,0)
gsw_beta_const_pt_t_exact saline contraction coefficient at constant potential temperature gsw_gibbs_ice_part_t part of gibbs_ice(1,0,t,p)
gsw_beta_const_t_exact saline contraction coefficient at constant in-situ temperature gsw_gibbs_ice_pt0 part of gibbs_ice(1,0,pt0,0)
gsw_specvol_anom_standard_t_exact specific volume anomaly realtive to SSO & 0°C gsw_specvol_SSO_0 specvol(35.16504,0,p)
gsw_rho_t_exact in-situ density gsw_enthalpy_SSO_0 enthalpy(35.16504,0,p)
gsw_pot_rho_t_exact potential density gsw_Hill_ratio_at_SP2 Hill ratio at a Practical Salinity of 2
gsw_sigma0_pt0_exact sigma0 from pt0 with reference pressure of 0 dbar
gsw_enthalpy_t_exact enthalpy The GSW data set:
gsw_dynamic_enthalpy_t_exact dynamic enthalpy gsw_data_v3_0 This file contains:
gsw_CT_first_derivatives_wrt_t_exact first derivatives of Conservative Temperature with respect to t (1) the global data set of Absolute Salinity Anomaly Ratio,
gsw_enthalpy_first_derivatives_wrt_t_exact first derivatives of enthalpy with respect to t (2) the global data set of Absolute Salinity Anomaly Ref.,
gsw_sound_speed_t_exact sound speed (3) a reference cast (for the isopycnal streamfunction),
gsw_kappa_t_exact isentropic compressibility (4) two reference casts that are used by gsw_demo
gsw_kappa_const_t_exact isothermal compressibility (5) three vertical profiles of (SP, t, p) at known long & lat, plus the
gsw_internal_energy_t_exact internal energy outputs of all the GSW functions for these 3 profiles,
gsw_SA_from_rho_t_exact Absolute Salinity from density and the required accuracy of all these outputs.
gsw_t_from_rho_exact in-situ temperature from density
gsw_t_maxdensity_exact in-situ temperature of maximum density of seawater documentation set
gsw_cp_t_exact isobaric heat capacity gsw_front_page front page to the GSW Oceanographic Toolbox
gsw_isochoric_heat_cap_t_exact isochoric heat capacity gsw_check_functions checks that all the GSW functions work correctly
gsw_chem_potential_relative_t_exact relative chemical potential gsw_demo demonstrates many GSW functions and features
gsw_chem_potential_water_t_exact chemical potential of water in seawater gsw_ver displays the GSW version number
gsw_chem_potential_salt_t_exact chemical potential of salt in seawater gsw_licence creative commons licence for the GSW Oceanographic Toolbox
gsw_t_deriv_chem_potential_water_t_exact temperature derivative of chemical potential of water
gsw_dilution_coefficient_t_exact dilution coefficient of seawater
gsw_Gibbs_energy_t_exact Gibbs energy
gsw_Helmholtz_energy_t_exact Helmholtz energy
gsw_osmotic_coefficient_t_exact osmotic coefficient of seawater The GSW Toolbox is available from
gsw_osmotic_pressure_t_exact osmotic pressure of seawater
[Link]–[Link]
18 Getting Started with TEOS-10

8. Changes to oceanographic practice under TEOS-10

For the past thirty years, using EOS-80, we have taken the “raw” data of Practical
Salinity SP (PSS-78), in situ temperature t (now ITS-90) and pressure p and we have used
an algorithm to calculate potential temperature θ in order to analyze and publish water-
mass characteristics on the SP − θ diagram. On this SP − θ diagram we have been able to
draw curved contours of potential density using EOS-80.
Under TEOS-10 this practice has now changed:- density and potential density (and all
types of geostrophic streamfunction including dynamic height anomaly) are now not
functions of Practical Salinity SP but rather are functions of Absolute Salinity S A .
TEOS-10 also defines a new temperature variable, Conservative Temperature Θ , which
takes the place of potential temperature θ (see section 5 above). Operationally, the
calculation of Conservative Temperature Θ as a function of ( SA , t, p ) under TEOS-10 is no
different in principle from the way potential temperature was calculated from ( SP , t , p )
under EOS-80; in both cases a simple computer algorithm is called. Conservative
Temperature Θ has the advantage over θ of more accurately representing the “heat
content” of seawater, and is also much closer (by a factor of a hundred) to being a
conservative variable than is potential temperature. Heat is exchanged between the ocean
and its atmosphere and ice boundaries as a flux of potential enthalpy which is exactly
c0p ≡ 3991.867 957 119 63 J kg −1 K −1 times the mass, times the corresponding flux of Θ . The
transport of potential enthalpy c0p Θ in the ocean, and in particular across ocean sections, can
be regarded as the transport of “heat” irrespective of whether there are non-zero fluxes of
mass and/or of salt across such ocean sections (see section 3.23 of IOC et al., 2010).
Under TEOS-10 is not possible to draw isolines of potential density on a SP − θ
diagram. Rather, because of the spatial variations of seawater composition, a given value of
potential density defines an area on the SP − θ diagram, not a curved line. Hence for the
analysis and publication of ocean data under TEOS-10 we need to change from using the
SP − θ diagram which was appropriate under EOS-80, to using the SA − Θ diagram. It is on
this SA − Θ diagram that the isolines of potential density can be drawn under TEOS-10.
Specific volume may be calculated from the sum of the Gibbs functions of pure water
(IAPWS-09, Feistel (2003)) and of salt (IAPWS-08, Feistel (2008)) using
gsw_specvol_CT_exact(SA,CT,p) or from the 75-term polynomial expression using
gsw_specvol(SA,CT,p). The errors involved with using the 75-term expression for specific
volume (or density) are much less than the uncertainty in the effect of seawater composition
on density, and are also much less than the uncertainty of the underlying laboratory density
data to which the TEOS-10 Gibbs function was fitted (IAPWS-08, Feistel (2008)). This
computationally efficient 75-term expression for specific volume is the obvious choice for
use in ocean models since it is a function of the model’s temperature variable, Conservative
Temperature. The highly accurate nature of the 75-term expression means that theoretical
studies, observational oceanography and ocean modeling can all be performed using the
same equation of state which is conveniently expressed in terms of Conservative
Temperature. This eliminates the need to continually transform from Conservative
Temperature back to in situ temperature in order to calculate density and its derivatives.
These advantages lead us to recommend the 75-term expression for general use by
oceanographers, including for observational studies, for ocean modelling and for theoretical
studies, thus ensuring consistency between these different branches of oceanography. The
GSW Oceanographic Toolbox provides many functions based on this 75-term equation of
state, including gsw_Nsquared(SA,CT,p) to evaluate the square of the buoyancy frequency,
gsw_enthalpy(SA,CT,p) to evaluate the specific enthalpy of seawater, and several functions
to evaluate various geostrophic streamfunctions. The geostrophic streamfunction to be used
for flow in an isobaric surface is gsw_geo_strf_dyn_height while that to be used in
approximately neutral surfaces (including potential density surfaces, ω -surfaces and
 Getting started with TEOS-10 19

Neutral Density ( γ n ) surfaces) is gsw_geo_strf_isopycnal. Also, it is this 75-term expression

for specific volume that will be the basis for updated algorithms for ω -surfaces (Klocker et
al. (2010)) and Neutral Density γ n (Jackett and McDougall (1997)).
In summary, under EOS-80 we have to date used the observed variables ( SP , t , p ) to
first form potential temperature θ and then we have analyzed water masses on the SP − θ
diagram, and we have been able to draw curved contours of potential density on this same
SP − θ diagram. Under TEOS-10, the observed variables ( SP , t , p ) , together with longitude
and latitude, are used to first form Absolute Salinity S A using gsw_SA_from_SP, and then
Conservative Temperature Θ is calculated using gsw_CT_from_t. Oceanographic water
masses are then analyzed on the SA − Θ diagram (e. g. by using gsw_SA_CT_plot), and
potential density contours can be drawn on this SA − Θ diagram using
gsw_rho(SA,CT,p_ref).
The various oceanographic properties that rely on the equation of state have been
written in terms of S A and Θ in the GSW Oceanographic Toolbox, and all of the
oceanographic variables in common use (including geostrophic streamfunctions) have been
written using the 75-term expression for specific volume to ensure consistency between
ocean models, observational studies and theoretical work. The use of many of these
functions can be seen by running gsw_demo.

9. Ocean modelling using TEOS-10

Ocean models treat their salinity and temperature variables as being conservative, with
the choice of variables to date being Practical Salinity and potential temperature. Converting
ocean models to be TEOS-10 compatible requires several changes. The model’s temperature
variable needs to
(i) accurately represent the “heat content” per unit mass of seawater and
(ii) to be as conservative as possible under ocean mixing processes.
Conservative Temperature Θ has these properties whereas potential temperature θ does
not. Fortunately it is relatively easy to change ocean models to have Conservative
Temperature as their temperature variable. With the expression for density being cast in
terms of Absolute Salinity S A and Conservative Temperature Θ as ρˆ ( SA , Θ, p ) , the interior
of an ocean model can be written totally in terms of this one temperature variable, Θ . In the
air-sea interaction module of an ocean model the sea-surface-temperature (SST) needs to be
evaluated for use in bulk air-sea flux formulae, and this is done by calling the function
gsw_pt_from_CT. This conversion from Θ to SST needs to done just at the sea surface in
the air-sea interaction module.
The current practice in numerical models is to treat salinity as a perfectly conserved
quantity in the interior of the ocean. In order to continue this practice the appropriate model
salinity variable is Preformed Salinity S* . Preformed Salinity and Absolute Salinity are
related to S R and S* respectively by Eqns. (A.20.1) and (A.20.2) of the TEOS-10 Manual,
repeated here
(
S* = SR 1 − r1Rδ , ) (5)

SA = S (1+ F δ ) ,
* (6)
where

Rδ ≡
δ SAatlas
and Fδ =
[1+ r1 ] Rδ . (7a, b)
S Ratlas (1 − r Rδ )
1
20 Getting Started with TEOS-10

The Absolute Salinity Anomaly Ratio, Rδ ≡ δ SAatlas S Ratlas , is the ratio of the values of
Absolute Salinity Anomaly and Reference Salinity in the stored hydrographic atlas, and r1 is
taken to be the constant 0.35 .
Because Preformed Salinity S* is designed to be a conservative salinity variable, blind to
the effects of biogeochemical processes, its evolution equation is in the conservative form
(see appendix A.21 of IOC et al. (2010)),
⎛ ∂ Ŝ ⎞
dŜ*
dt
( )
= γ z ∇ n ⋅ γ z−1 K∇ n Ŝ* + ⎜ D * ⎟ .
⎝ ∂z ⎠ z
(8)

Here the over-tilde of Ŝ* indicates that this variable is the thickness-weighted average
Preformed Salinity, having been averaged between a pair of closely-spaced neutral tangent
planes. The material derivative on the left-hand side of Eqn. (8) is with respect to the sum of
the Eulerian and quasi-Stokes velocities of height coordinates (equivalent to the description
in appendix A.21 of IOC et al. (2010) in terms of the thickness-weighted mean horizontal
velocity and the mean dianeutral velocity), while the right-hand side of this equation is the
standard notation indicating that Ŝ* is being diffused along neutral tangent planes with the
diffusivity K and in the vertical direction with the diapycnal diffusivity D (and γ z−1 is the
average of the reciprocal of the vertical gradient of Neutral Density or locally-referenced
potential density). The model is initialized with values of Preformed Salinity using Eqn. (5)
based on observations of Practical Salinity and on the interpolated global observed data base
of Rδ ; this is best done by calling gsw_Sstar_from_SP.
In order to evaluate density during the running of an ocean model, Absolute Salinity
must be evaluated based on the model’s primary salinity variable, Preformed Salinity, and
Eqn. (6). This can be done by carrying the following evolution equation for F δ
⎛ ∂F δ ⎞
dF δ
dt
( )
= γ z ∇ n ⋅ γ z−1 K∇ n F δ + ⎜ D
⎝ ∂z ⎟⎠
( )
+ τ −1 F δ obs − F δ . (9)
z
The model variable F δ (note that F δ = SA S* − 1) is initialized based on observations of
Rδ ≡ δ SAatlas S Ratlas and the use of Eqn. (7b); this is best done by calling gsw_Fdelta. Equation
(9) shows that F δ is advected and diffused like any other tracer, but in addition, there is a
( )
non-conservative source term τ −1 F δ obs − F δ which serves to restore the model variable
F δ towards the observed value (found from gsw_Fdelta) with a restoring time τ that can
be chosen to suit particular modeling needs (see the discussion in appendix A.20 of the
TEOS-10 Manual, IOC et al. (2010)).
In summary, the approach for handling salinity in ocean models suggested in IOC et al.
(2010) and summarized here carries the evolution Eqns. (8) and (9) for Ŝ* and F δ , while Ŝ A
is calculated from these two model variables at each time step according to

(
SˆA = Sˆ* 1+ F δ . ) (10)
It is this salinity, Ŝ A , which is used as the argument for the model’s expression for density at
each time step of the model.
The Baltic Sea is somewhat of an exception because its compositional variations are not
due to biogeochemistry but to anomalous riverine input of dissolved salts which behave
conservatively. Preformed Salinity S* in the Baltic is equal to Absolute Salinity S A , which
implies that r1 = − 1 and F δ = 0 in the Baltic Sea. Hence in the Baltic, an ocean model
simply puts SA = S∗ and the value of Absolute Salinity Anomaly δ SA is immaterial during
the running of the model. Of course the values of δ SA in the Baltic are important for
relating Absolute Salinity and Preformed Salinity to measured values of Practical Salinity
there. The discharges (mass fluxes) of river water and of Absolute Salinity should both
appear as source terms at the edges of the Baltic Sea in the model.
If an ocean model is to be run for only a short time (perhaps as long as a century) then it
may be sufficiently accurate to carry only one salinity variable, namely Absolute Salinity S A .
 Getting started with TEOS-10 21

For longer integrations the neglect of the non-conservative biogeochemical source term
means that the model’s salinity variable SA will depart from reality. A more detailed
discussion of these points is available in appendix A.20 of IOC et al. (2010). To our
knowledge, as of July 2020, no ocean model has adopted this approach; rather they have
used only one salinity variable, namely Absolute Salinity SA .
In summary, the changes needed to make ocean models TEOS-10 compatible are
(i) ( )
use an equation of state in terms of SA and  , v̂ SA ,, p , such as the 75-term
expression to be found in gsw_specvol(SA,CT,p),
(ii) have Conservative Temperature  as the model’s temperature variable (note
that SST needs to be evaluated in the model’s air-sea flux module using
gsw_pt_from_CT at the sea surface only),
(iii) incorporate the effects of the spatially variable seawater composition using the
techniques of appendix A.20 of IOC et al. (2010) as summarized above,
(iv) restoring boundary conditions for ocean-only models can be imposed on the
model variables S* and  ,
(v) model output salinities and temperatures are best made as Absolute Salinity SA
and Conservative Temperature  , consistent with the variables which will be
published in oceanographic journals.
To our knowledge, as of July 2020, points (iii) and (iv) have not yet been implemented in
ocean models. Rather the model’s salinity variable is initialized and is interpreted as
Absolute Salinity SA , and if a salinity restoring boundary condition is used, it is applied to
Absolute Salinity.

10. A guide to the GSW Oceanographic Toolbox

The key attributes of the three oceanographic variables SA , S* and  may be
summarized as follows. Preformed Salinity S* and Conservative Temperature  are the
ideal variables for representing the “salt content” and “heat content” of seawater in the
standard conservation equations of physical oceanography. However, the thermodynamic
properties of seawater (in particular, density) depend not on Preformed Salinity S* , but
rather on Absolute Salinity SA . While Practical Salinity SP is relatively easy to measure
accurately, it should now be regarded as a stepping stone on the way to calculating the two
more attractive salinity variables, SA and S* .
The GSW functions are listed on the central four pages of this document. The group of
functions “Practical Salinity (SP), PSS-78” contains routines for Practical Salinity in terms of
either conductivity C or conductivity ratio R, as well as their inverse functions. The input
temperature to these functions is in situ temperature (ITS-90), and the inverse algorithms are
iterated until the Practical Salinity is equal to the input value to within 2x 1014 , that is, to
machine precision. These functions incorporate a modified form of the extension of Hill et
al. (1986) to Practical Salinities between zero and 2. The modification ensures that the
algorithm is exactly PSS-78 for SP  2 and is continuous at SP  2 . The function in this
group, gsw_SP_salinometer, calculates Practical Salinity from the two outputs of a
laboratory salinometer, namely Rt and the bath temperature.
The second group delivers the three new oceanographic variables, Absolute Salinity SA ,
Preformed Salinity S* , and Conservative Temperature  . The first two functions have
Practical Salinity SP , pressure, longitude and latitude as input variables. Note that virtually
all of the functions which follow this second group require Absolute Salinity SA as an input.
Hence it is clear that when analyzing oceanic data, the very first function call must be to
gsw_SA_from_SP. Hence this function is the most fundamental in the GSW toolbox. This
function can be avoided only by ignoring the influence of the spatial variations of seawater
composition, in which case the remaining GSW functions would be called with Reference
22 Getting Started with TEOS-10

Salinity S R (given by calling gsw_SR_from_SP) in place of S A . The function

gsw_CT_from_t evaluates Conservative Temperature Θ , as a function of Absolute Salinity
SA , in situ temperature t and pressure p .
The third group contains just the function gsw_SA_CT_plot which plots the TEOS-10
version of the “T-S” diagram for a series of vertical profiles. The Conservative Temperature
at the freezing point for p = 0 dbar, and user-selected potential density contours are also
displayed on this SA − Θ diagram using the 75-term expression for the density of seawater,
gsw_rho(SA,CT,p).
The fourth grouping of functions has the heading “other conversions between
temperatures, salinities, entropy, pressure and height”. Some of these functions are the
reverse of those in the previous groups (namely gsw_SP_from_SA, gsw_SP_from_Sstar and
gsw_t_from_CT) while others perform familiar functions such as
gsw_pt_from_t(SA,t,p,p_ref) which evaluates the potential temperature of the “bottle”
(SA,t,p) referenced to the pressure p_ref.
The next group of functions (the right-hand side of the first page), headed “specific
volume, density and enthalpy”, are all derived from the computationally-efficient 75-term
( )
expression for specific volume, v̂ SA ,Θ, p of Roquet et al. (2015). This group includes the
function gsw_rho to evaluate both density and potential density, and gsw_alpha to evaluate
the relevant thermal expansion coefficient. This 75-term expression for specific volume is
essentially as accurate as the full TEOS-10 expression, and this 75-term expression has the
advantage that its temperature argument is Conservative Temperature. The functions
gsw_enthalpy and gsw_enthalpy_diff can be used when evaluating various geostrophic
streamfunctions, since under isentropic and isohaline conditions, enthalpy is the pressure
integral of specific volume. The functions gsw_SA_from_rho and gsw_CT_from_rho are
essentially the inverse functions of the equation of state in that they return the Absolute
Salinity (or Conservative Temperature respectively) for given values of density, pressure
and either Θ or S A respectively.
The next group of functions, headed “vertical stability and interpolation”, delivers
variables which are defined in terms of the vertical gradients of S A and Θ on an individual
vertical profile, and so are inherently water column properties. These functions deliver the
square of the buoyancy frequency (gsw_Nsquared), the Turner angle, and the ratio of the
vertical gradient of potential density to the vertical gradient of locally-referenced potential
density. The interpolation functions implement the algorithms of Barker and McDougall
(2020) which uses multiply rotated piecewise cubic Hermite polynomials, while the
stablisation functions implement the method described by Barker and McDougall (2017).
The following group is for calculating four different geostrophic streamfunctions, and
the acoustic travel time for sound up and down a vertical water column. All of these GSW
geostrophic streamfunction functions have S A and Θ as their input salinity and
temperature. It is important to realize that a particular geostrophic streamfunction is only
accurate when used in the surface for which it is derived. For example, dynamic height
anomaly is the geostrophic streamfunction in an isobaric surface while the Montgomery
streamfunction is the geostrophic streamfunction in a specific volume anomaly surface.
When one is working in some type of approximately neutral surface, the Cunningham
geostrophic streamfunction is more accurate than the Montgomery streamfunction, while
the “isopycnal” geostrophic streamfunction gsw_geo_strf_isopycnal of McDougall and
Klocker (2010) is the most accurate (see Figures 1, 2 and 3 of McDougall and Klocker (2010)).
The functions in this group all use the 75-term polynomial for specific volume. The function,
gsw_geostrophic_velocity, calculates the geostrophic velocity in a given surface with
respect to the velocity in a reference surface. This function should be called with dynamic
height anomaly if the surface in which the geostrophic velocity is required is an isobaric
surface. Similarly, gsw_geostrophic_velocity should be called with the “isopycnal”
geostrophic streamfunction gsw_geo_strf_isopycnal if the surface in which the geostrophic
 Getting started with TEOS-10 23

velocity is evaluated is an approximately neutral surface (such as a Neutral Density surface

(Jackett and McDougall (1997)), an ω -surface (Klocker et al. (2010)) or a potential density
surface).
The following four groups give properties of ice, of sea ice, and of the thermodynamic
equilibrium between seawater and either ice or sea ice. These four groups are followed (on
page 3) by a group of functions which gives the latent heats of melting and of evaporation.
The next group “spiciness” delivers the spiciness variable for three different reference
pressures. Spiciness is a measure of the change of water-mass properties along a potential
density surface.
The next group of functions is concerned with various neutral attributes of the seawater
equation of state and returns properties such as the ratio of the gradient of Conservative
Temperature in a potential density surface to that in the neutral tangent plane.
The following group “derivatives of entropy, CT and pt” contains functions which use
the full TEOS-10 Gibbs function and have a variety of input temperatures, appropriate to the
variable being differentiated. The outputs of these functions are used, for example, in
evaluating the amount of non-conservative production associated with each variable
(entropy, CT and pt) when two seawater parcels are mixed.
The group, “planet Earth properties”, delivers straightforward properties of the rotating
planet of the solar system on which we presently reside.
The group “TEOS-10 constants” simply returns various constants which are basic to
TEOS-10. Note that the constant gsw_C3515 is not a fundamental constant of either PSS-78
or TEOS-10 but is required to convert a measured conductivity value C into conductivity
ratio R (which is a fundamental property of PSS-78).
The group of GSW functions, “laboratory functions, for use with densimeter
measurements”, have in situ temperature t as their input temperature variable. All three
functions in this group use the full TEOS-10 Gibbs function, namely the sum of the Gibbs
functions of IAPWS-09 and IAPWS-08 (rather than the 75-term expression for specific
volume). Two of these three functions are also listed on the lower left group of the fourth
page; they are also listed here to give them more prominence for those using a densimeter in
a laboratory setting.
The group of GSW functions on the right-hand side of the third page, headed “specific
volume, density and enthalpy in terms of CT, based on the exact Gibbs function” delivers
the same outputs as the corresponding group on page 1, and with the same input variables.
(
The functions on page 1 are based on the 75-term expression for specific volume, v̂ SA ,Θ, p ,)
whereas the functions on page 3 use the exact Gibbs function for seawater to calculate
specific volume. The function names in this group differ from those on page 1 by the
additional “_exact” at the end of each function name. These functions can be used to
confirm that the use of the 75-term computationally efficient equation of state does not
noticeably degrade any output property.
The group “dissolved gases” contains algorithms for the solubility of various gases.
This is not work that resulted from SCOR/IAPSO Working Group 127, nor have these
algorithms been approved by IOC. These algorithms are included in the GSW
Oceanographic Toolbox as they seem to be oceanographic best practice.
The next list, headed “basic thermodynamic properties in terms of in-situ t, based on the
exact Gibbs function” contains many of the basic thermodynamic properties of seawater.
Each of these functions have in situ temperature as the input temperature variable. The next
group contains the library functions used by GSW. These are internal functions which are
not intended to be called by users. There is nothing stopping a skilled operator using these
programs, but unless the user is confident, it is safer to access these library routines via one
of the public functions; for example, there is little or no checking on the array sizes of the
input variables in these internal library functions. The data set gsw_data_v3_0 must not be
tampered with.
24 Getting Started with TEOS-10

In the documentation set the function gsw_check_functions confirms that the GSW
Oceanographic Toolbox is correctly installed and that there are no conflicts. This function
runs three stored vertical profiles through of all the other GSW functions, and checks that
the outputs are within predefined limits of the correct answers. These pre-defined limits are
a factor of approximately a hundred larger than the errors expected from numerical round-
off (at the standard double precision of MATLAB). The user may want to run
gsw_check_functions periodically to confirm that the software remains uncorrupted.
gsw_demo runs and displays results from several of the GSW functions, so introducing the
user to some of the features of the Toolbox.
The GSW Oceanographic Toolbox is designed to be comprehensive and to be installed
in its entirety, even though most users may use relatively few of the functions for routine
oceanographic analyses. For example, the most basic use of the GSW Oceanographic
Toolbox would begin with a data set of ( SP , t , p ) at known longitudes and latitudes. The
first steps are to call gsw_SA_from_SP and then gsw_CT_from_t to convert to a data set of
( SA , Θ, p ) . With the data set in this form, water masses may be analyzed accurately on the
SA − Θ diagram, and in situ density and potential density are available by calling the
computationally-efficient 75-term expression for density, gsw_rho, with the pressure input
being the in situ sea pressure p , and the reference sea pressure p_ref, respectively. That is,
in situ density is evaluated as gsw_rho(SA,CT,p) and potential density with respect to the
reference pressure p_ref is given by gsw_rho(SA,CT,p_ref).

11. References
Barker, P. M. and T. J. McDougall, 2017: Stabilising hydrographic profiles with minimal change
to water masses. Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology, 34, 1935-1945.
Barker, P. M. and T. J. McDougall, 2020: Two Interpolation Methods using Multiply-Rotated
Piecewise Cubic Hermite Interpolating Polynomials. Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic
Technology, 37, 605-619.
Feistel, R., 2003: A new extended Gibbs thermodynamic potential of seawater, Progr. Oceanogr.,
58, 43-114.
Feistel, R., 2008: A Gibbs function for seawater thermodynamics for −6 to 80 °C and salinity up to
120 g kg–1, Deep-Sea Res. I, 55, 1639-1671.
Feistel, R., S. Weinreben, H. Wolf, S. Seitz, P. Spitzer, B. Adel, G. Nausch, B. Schneider and
D. G. Wright, 2010: Density and Absolute Salinity of the Baltic Sea 2006–2009. Ocean Science,
6, 3–24. [Link]
Graham, F. S. and T. J. McDougall, 2013: Quantifying the non-conservative production of
Conservative Temperature, potential temperature and entropy. Journal of Physical
Oceanography, 43, 838-862.
Hill, K. D., T. M. Dauphinee and D. J. Woods, 1986: The extension of the Practical Salinity Scale
1978 to low salinities, IEEE J. Oceanic Eng., 11, 109–112.
IAPWS, 2008: Release on the IAPWS Formulation 2008 for the Thermodynamic Properties of
Seawater. The International Association for the Properties of Water and Steam. Berlin,
Germany, September 2008, available from [Link].
IAPWS, 2009: Supplementary Release on a Computationally Efficient Thermodynamic
Formulation for Liquid Water for Oceanographic Use. The International Association for the
Properties of Water and Steam. Doorwerth, The Netherlands, September 2009, available
from [Link]. This Release is referred to in the text as IAPWS-09.
IOC, SCOR and IAPSO, 2010: The international thermodynamic equation of seawater – 2010:
Calculation and use of thermodynamic properties. Intergovernmental Oceanographic
Commission, Manuals and Guides No. 56, UNESCO (English), 196 pp. Available from
[Link]
 Getting started with TEOS-10 25

Jackett, D. R. and T. J. McDougall, 1997: A neutral density variable for the world’s oceans. Journal
of Physical Oceanography, 27, 237-263.
Klocker, A., T. J. McDougall and D. R. Jackett, 2009: A new method for forming approximately
neutral surfaces. Ocean Sci., 5, 155-172.
McDougall, T. J. 2003: Potential enthalpy: A conservative oceanic variable for evaluating heat
content and heat fluxes. Journal of Physical Oceanography, 33, 945-963.
McDougall T. J. and P. M. Barker, 2011: Getting started with TEOS-10 and the Gibbs Seawater
(GSW) Oceanographic Toolbox, 28pp., SCOR/IAPSO WG127, ISBN 978-0-646-55621-5.
Available from [Link] (this is the present document).
McDougall, T. J., D. R. Jackett, F. J. Millero, R. Pawlowicz and P. M. Barker, 2012: A global
algorithm for estimating Absolute Salinity. Ocean Science, 8, 1123-1134. [Link]
[Link]/8/1123/2012/[Link]
McDougall, T. J., D. R. Jackett, D. G. Wright and R. Feistel, 2003: Accurate and computationally
efficient algorithms for potential temperature and density of seawater. Journal of Atmospheric
and Oceanic Technology, 20, 730-741.
McDougall, T. J. and A. Klocker, 2010: An approximate geostrophic streamfunction for use in
density surfaces. Ocean Modelling, 32, 105-117.
Millero, F. J., R. Feistel, D. G. Wright, and T. J. McDougall, 2008: The composition of Standard
Seawater and the definition of the Reference-Composition Salinity Scale, Deep-Sea Res. I, 55,
50-72.
Pawlowicz, R., 2010: What every oceanographer needs to know about TEOS-10 (The TEOS-10
Primer), unpublished manuscript, available from [Link].
Pawlowicz, R., D. G. Wright and F. J. Millero, 2011: The effects of biogeochemical processes on
oceanic conductivity/salinity/density relationships and the characterization of real seawater.
Ocean Science, 7, 363–387. [Link]
Roquet, F., G. Madec, T. J. McDougall and P. M. Barker, 2015: Accurate polynomial expressions
for the density and specific volume of seawater using the TEOS-10 standard. Ocean
Modelling, 90, 29-43, [Link]
Wright, D. G., R. Pawlowicz, T. J. McDougall, R. Feistel and G. M. Marion, 2011: Absolute
Salinity, “Density Salinity” and the Reference-Composition Salinity Scale: present and
future use in the seawater standard TEOS-10. Ocean Sci., 7, 1-26.
[Link]
26 Getting Started with TEOS-10

12. Recommended nomenclature, symbols and units in

oceanography

This section 12 is from appendix L of the TEOS-10 Manual, IOC et al. (2010).

L.1 Recommended nomenclature

The strict SI units of Absolute Salinity, temperature and pressure are kg kg −1, Absolute
Temperature in K and Absolute Pressure P in Pa. These are the units predominantly
adopted in the SIA computer software for the input and output variables. If oceanographers
were to adopt this practice of using strictly SI quantities it would simplify many
thermodynamic expressions at the cost of using unfamiliar units.
The GSW Oceanographic Toolbox (appendix N) adopts as far as possible the currently
used oceanographic units, so that the input variables for all the computer algorithms are
Absolute Salinity in S A in g kg −1, temperature in ° C and pressure as sea pressure in dbar.
The outputs of the functions are also generally consistent with this choice of units, but some
variables are more naturally expressed in SI units.
It seems impractical to recommend that the field of oceanography fully adopt strict basic
SI units. It is however very valuable to have the field adopt uniform symbols and units, and
in the interests of achieving this uniformity we recommend the following symbols and units.
These are the symbols and units we have adopted in the GSW Oceanographic Toolbox.

Table L.1. Recommended Symbols and Units in Oceanography

Quantity Symbol Units Comments

–1
Chlorinity Cl g kg Chlorinity is defined as the following mass
fraction; it is 0.328 523 4 times the ratio of the
mass of pure silver required to precipitate all
dissolved chloride, bromide and iodide in seawater
to the mass of seawater.

Standard Ocean SSO g kg–1 35.165 04 g kg–1 being exactly 35 uPS ,

Reference Salinity corresponding to the standard ocean Practical
Salinity of 35.
freezing temperatures t f , Θf ºC in situ and conservative values, each as a function
of S A and p.
Absolute Pressure P Pa When Absolute Pressure is used it should always
be in Pa, not in Mpa nor in dbar.

sea pressure. Sea pressure p dbar Equal to P − P0 and usually expressed in dbar not
is the pressure argument
Pa.
to all the
GSW Toolbox functions.
 Getting started with TEOS-10 27

gauge pressure. Gauge p gauge dbar Equal to the Absolute Pressure P minus the local
pressure (also called atmospheric pressure at the time of the instrument
applied pressure) is calibration, and expressed in dbar not Pa. Sea
sometimes reported from pressure p is preferred over gauge pressure p gauge ,
ship-born instruments. as p is the argument to the seawater Gibbs
function.
reference pressure pr dbar The value of the sea pressure p to which potential
temperature and/or potential density are
referenced.
one standard atmosphere P0 Pa exactly 101 325 Pa (= 10.1325 dbar)
isopycnal slope ratio r 1 α Θ ( p) β Θ ( p)
r =
α Θ ( pr ) β Θ ( pr )
Stability Ratio Rρ 1 Rρ = α ΘΘz β Θ ( SA )z ≈ α θ θ z β θ ( SA )z .
isopycnal temperature GΘ 1 G Θ = r ⎡⎣ Rρ −1⎤⎦ ⎡⎣ Rρ − r ⎤⎦ ; ∇σ Θ = G Θ∇n Θ
gradient ratio
Practical Salinity SP 1 Defined in the range 2 < SP < 42 by PSS-78 based
on measured conductivity ratios.
Reference Salinity SR g kg-1 Reference-Composition Salinity (or Reference
Salinity for short) is the Absolute Salinity of
seawater samples that have Reference
Composition. At S P = 35, S R is exactly uPS SP .
while in the range 2 < SP < 42 SR ≈ uPS SP .
Absolute Salinity SA = SAdens g kg-1 SA = SR + δ SA ≈ uPS SP + δ SA
(This is the salinity Absolute Salinity is the sum of S R on the Millero
argument of all the
et al. (2008a) Reference-Salinity Scale and the
GSW Toolbox functions.)
Absolute Salinity Anomaly. The full symbol for
S A is SAdens as it is the type of absolute salinity
which delivers the best estimate of density when
used as the salinity argument of the TEOS-10
Gibbs function. Another name for SA = SAdens is
“Density Salinity”.
Absolute Salinity δ SA g kg-1 δ SA = SA − SR , the difference between Absolute
Anomaly Salinity, SA = SAdens , and Reference-Composition
Salinity. In terms of the full nomenclature of
Pawlowicz et al. (2010), Wright et al. (2010b) and
appendix A.4 herein, the Absolute Salinity
Anomaly δ SA is δ SRdens .
“Preformed Absolute S* g kg-1 Preformed Absolute Salinity S* is a salinity
Salinity”, variable that is designed to be as conservative as
often shortened to possible, by removing the estimated
biogeochemical influences on the seawater
“Preformed Salinity” composition from other forms of salinity (see
Pawlowicz et al. (2010), Wright et al. (2010b)).
“Solution Absolute S Asoln g kg-1 The mass fraction of non-H2O constituents in
Salinity”, often shortened seawater after it has been brought to chemical
to “Solution Salinity” equilibrium at t = 25°C and p = 0 dbar (see
Pawlowicz et al. (2010), Wright et al. (2010b)).
“Added-Mass Salinity” SAadd g kg-1 SAadd − SR is the estimated mass fraction of non-
H2O constituents needed as ingredients to be added
to Standard Seawater which when mixed and
brought to chemical equilibrium at t = 25°C and
p = 0 dbar results in the observed seawater
composition.
28 Getting Started with TEOS-10

temperature t ºC
Absolute Temperature T K T / K ≡ T0 / K + t / (°C) = 273.15 + t / (°C)
temperature derivatives T K When a quantity is differentiated with respect to in
situ temperature, the symbol T is used in order to
distinguish this variable from time.
Celsius zero point T0 K T0 ≡ 273.15 K
potential temperature θ ºC Defined implicitly by Eqn. (3.1.3)
Conservative Temperature Θ ºC Defined in Eqn. (3.3.1) as exactly potential
enthalpy divided by c 0p .
the “specific heat”, for use c 0p J kg–1 K–1 c0p ≡ 3991.867 957 119 63 J kg −1 K −1 . This 15-digit
with Conservative number is defined to be the exact value of c 0p .
Temperature c 0p is the ratio of potential enthalpy h0 to Θ .
combined standard uc Varies
uncertainty
enthalpy H J
specific enthalpy h J kg–1 h = u + ( p + P0 ) v .
Here p and P0 must be in Pa not dbar.
specific potential enthalpy h0 J kg–1 specific enthalpy referenced to zero sea pressure,
h0 = h ( SA ,θ [ SA , t , p, pr = 0], pr = 0 )
–1 –1
specific isobaric heat cp J kg K c p = ∂h ∂T SA , p
capacity

internal energy U J
specific internal energy u J kg–1
specific isochoric heat cv J kg–1 K–1 cv = ∂u ∂T SA , v
capacity

Gibbs function G J
(Gibbs energy)
specific Gibbs function g J kg–1
(Gibbs energy)
specific Helmholtz energy f J kg–1
unit conversion factor for uPS g kg–1 uPS ≡ (35.16504 35) g kg−1 ≈ 1.004 715... g kg−1
salinities The first part of this expression is exact. This
conversion factor is an important and invariant
constant of the 2008 Reference-Salinity Scale
(Millero et al. (2008a)).
entropy Σ J K–1
specific entropy η J kg–1 K–1 In many other publications the symbol s is used for
specific entropy.
density ρ kg m–3
kg m–3 ρ ( SA , t,0) – 1000 kg m
–3
density anomaly σt
σ2 kg m–3 ρ ( SA , θ [ SA , t , p, pr ], pr ) – 1000 kg m where
potential density anomaly -3

referenced to a sea
pressure of 2000 dbar pr = 2000 dbar
σ4 kg m–3 ρ ( SA , θ [ SA , t , p, pr ], pr ) – 1000 kg m where
potential density anomaly -3

referenced to a sea
pressure of 4000 dbar pr = 4000 dbar
thermal expansion αt
coefficient with respect to
K–1 v −1∂v / ∂T SA , p = − ρ −1∂ρ / ∂T SA , p

in situ temperature
thermal expansion αθ
coefficient with respect to
K–1 v −1∂v / ∂θ SA , p = − ρ −1∂ρ / ∂θ SA , p

potential temperature θ
 Getting started with TEOS-10 29

thermal expansion αΘ
coefficient with respect to
K–1 v −1∂v / ∂Θ SA , p = − ρ −1∂ρ / ∂Θ SA , p

Conservative Temperature
Θ
saline contraction βt kg g–1 − v −1∂v / ∂SA T,p = ρ −1∂ρ / ∂SA T,p
coefficient at constant in
situ temperature Note that the units for β t are consistent with SA
being in g kg-1.

saline contraction βθ kg g–1 − v −1∂v / ∂SA θ,p = ρ −1∂ρ / ∂SA θ,p

coefficient at constant
potential temperature Note that the units for β θ are consistent with SA
being in g kg-1.

saline contraction βΘ kg g–1 − v −1∂v / ∂SA Θ, p = + ρ −1∂ρ / ∂SA Θ, p

coefficient at constant
Θ
Conservative Temperature Note that the units for β are consistent with SA
being in g kg-1.
isothermal compressibility κt Pa–1

isentropic and isohaline κ Pa–1

compressibility
chemical potential of µW J g–1
water in seawater
chemical potential of sea µS J g–1
salt in seawater
relative chemical potential µ J g–1
of (sea salt and water in) (∂g ∂SA )t , p = µ S − µ W
seawater
dissipation rate of kinetic ε J kg–1 s–1
energy per unit mass = m2 s–3

adiabatic lapse rate Γ K Pa–1 ∂t ∂t ∂t ∂v (T0 +θ ) ∂v

Γ= = = = =
∂P S ∂P S ∂P S ∂η c0p ∂Θ S
A ,θ A ,Θ A ,η SA , p A, p

–1
sound speed c ms
specific volume v m3 kg–1 v = ρ −1
specific volume anomaly δ m3 kg–1
thermobaric coefficient
based on θ
Tbθ K −1Pa −1 Tbθ = β θ ∂ α θ β θ ( ) ∂P SA , θ

thermobaric coefficient TbΘ K −1Pa −1 TbΘ = β Θ ∂ α Θ β Θ ( ) ∂P

based on Θ SA , Θ

cabbeling coefficient 2
Cbθ K −2
Cbθ = ∂α θ ∂θ
θ
+ 2 α θ ∂α θ ∂SA
⎛ θ⎞
− ⎜ α ⎟ ∂β θ ∂SA
based on θ SA , p β θ , p ⎝ βθ ⎠ θ, p
cabbeling coefficient C bΘ K −2 Θ ⎛ Θ⎞
2
CbΘ = ∂α Θ ∂Θ + 2 α Θ ∂α Θ ∂SA − ⎜ α Θ ⎟ ∂β Θ ∂SA
based on Θ SA , p β Θ, p ⎝β ⎠ Θ, p
buoyancy frequency N s −1 ( )
N = g α Θz − β SA z = g α θ θ z − β θ SA z
2 Θ Θ
( )
neutral helicity H n
m −3 defined by Eqns. (3.13.1) and (3.13.2)
Neutral Density γn a density variable whose iso-surfaces are designed
kg m–3
to be approximately neutral, i. e.
α Θ∇γ Θ ≈ β Θ∇γ SA .
Neutral-Surface-Potential- NSPV s −3 NSPV = − g ρ −1 f γ zn where f is the Coriolis
Vorticity parameter.
dynamic height anomaly Ψ m 2 s −2 Pa m3 kg −1 = m2 s−2
Montgomery geostrophic ΨM m 2 s −2 Pa m3 kg −1 = m2 s−2
streamfunction
30 Getting Started with TEOS-10

PISH (Pressure-Integrated Ψ′ kg s-2 streamfunction for f times the depth-integrated

Steric Height) relative mass flux, see Eqns. (3.31.1) – (3.31.5).
Coriolis parameter f s −1 1.458 42 x 10−4 sin φ s−1 , where φ is latitude
M S is the mole-weighted average atomic weight
molar mass of Reference MS g mol−1 of the constituents of Reference Seawater,
Seawater
M S = 31.403 821 8... g mol−1 , from Millero et al.
(2008a).
1 SA
molality of seasalt in mol kg–1 mSW = ∑ i mi = . mi is the molality
Reference Seawater
mSW (
M S 1− SA )
of constituent i in Reference Seawater.

Z 2 = ∑ i X i Z i2 ≡ 1.245 289 8 where Z i is the

valence factor of Z2 1
Reference Seawater charge of seawater constituent i which is present
at the mole fraction X i in Reference Seawater
(from Millero et al. (2008a)).

ionic strength of I mol kg–1

I = 1
2
mSW Z 2 = 1
2 ∑ i mi Zi2
Reference Seawater = 0.622 644 9 mSW
0.622 644 9 SA
≈ mol kg −1 .
0.031 403 821 8 1− SA ( )
mi is the molality of constituent i in Reference
Seawater.
g ( 0, t , p ) − µ W ( SA , t , p )
osmotic coefficient φ 1 φ ( SA , T , p ) =
mSW R (T0 + t )
where the molar gas constant,
R = 8.314 472 J mol–1 K–1. See also Eqns. (2.14.1)
and (3.40.9) for an equivalent definition of φ .

Acknowledgements
We gratefully acknowledge Australian Research Council support through grant
FL150100090. The authors also acknowledge financial support from CSIRO during the early
development of the GSW Oceanographic Toolbox.
 TEOS-10 and GSW in a nutshell

In order to analyse oceanographic data under TEOS-10, the observed values of

Practical Salinity SP and in situ temperature t need to be converted into
Absolute Salinity S A and Conservative Temperature  , as follows,
Step 1. calculate Absolute Salinity, S A = gsw_SA_from_SP(SP, p, long, lat),
Step 2. calculate Conservative Temperature,  = gsw_CT_from_t(SA, t, p).
Having converted ( S P , t , p ) to ( S A , , p ) , the GSW functions listed on page 14
of this document are then used for analysing the data. The use of these GSW
functions ensures consistency between theoretical oceanography, observational
oceanography and ocean modelling.

Under TEOS-10, the SA −  diagram is the new “T-S” diagram. The above
SA −  diagram was plotted using gsw_SA_CT_plot. The  2 potential
density anomaly contours were evaluated inside this function using
gsw_rho(SA,CT,2000). This same function can be used to evaluate in situ
density via gsw_rho(SA,CT,p). In the above diagram the raw data appears as
black dots and the blue line was produced using the function
gsw_SA_CT_interp.
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