The float was launched as a part of float group with NPS#72 , NPS#74 (deep float), and NPS#73 (Figure 1). The mid-depth floats were launched south of Point Sur in an across-shore row with the nearest to the shore point about 31 km distant from Pfeiffer Point, a distance between points in the row was about 18 km.

This is a recycled NPS#64 .

The float went northwestward for about 25 days and then turned offshore into the interior (Figure 2). It moved westward along a relatively smooth trajectory for ~80 days, then curved in a reverse direction. On June 29, 2000 the float started looping anticyclonically (Figure 4):


Number of loops 2
Diameter, km 103.4
Duration, days 49.5
Period, days 24.8
Swirl velocity, cm/s 15.2
Translation velocity, cm/s 2.4
Direction, degrees 217
Rossby number 0.03



Then it went southward and made two cyclonic loops with diameter of ~100 km and period of 26 days.

The float was ballasted for 275 dbar but during the mission it rose from ~210 to ~110 dbar (Figure 3).