Ups & Downs for Oceanography

I. Summary

This series is directed at

• Establishing importance of oceanographic data in everyday life

• Exploring instrumentation/platforms available, focusing on gliders

• Discussing examples of data collected

• Practicing applying such data

II. Objectives

After this series, you will be

• Able to provide a suite of examples of oceanographic data that impact ‘day-to-day’ life

• Able to discuss the various tools available to collect such data

• Able to navigate various web sites to obtain and use such data

III. Materials

Computer lab with internet access

Handouts:

1. URL maps

2. “Ideas” sheet

IV. Procedure

A. Lecture on the topic

B. Consult ‘URL’ map to navigate various relevant sites

C. Consult ‘ideas’ sheet or come up with own ideas to complete project

Projects (choose 1)

“Wow! Fishing at xxx is going to be great today”

“Why is the beach water cold today?”

“We just lost $xxxx because the captain did not check at prevailing currents”

The Plan

I. Predicting the Ocean

A. Important

B. Data needed

Beach erosionShipping

Fishing

Biological phenomena

II. Quest for data

A. Dynamic environment

B. Real time or near-real time data

• Why?• Collection• Storage• Analysis

2. Data collection

• Use assets– Land based– At sea– Satellites

3. Storage

• Retrieval facilitated

4. Data analysis

Data scrutiny – accuracy

Data scrutiny – consistency

Data scrutiny – artifacts

III. Parameters

A. CTD

B. Backscatter

C. DO

D. Wave data

E. Current vector

F. Other

IV. Collection methods

A. Mission requirements

B. Endurance

V. Some of the assets

A. Satellites

B. Cabled seafloor observatory

C. Land based radar

D. Vehicles1. Ships

2. Submersibles

A. Satellites

ChlorophyllChlorophyll

Sea surface temperature anomalies – latitude/temperature anomalies

True color imagery

B. Cabled seafloor observatory

• http://marine.rutgers.edu/nurp/leo-15/Node_B_Wave_Plots.htm

C. Land based radar

• http://marine.rutgers.edu/cool/codar/real-time/archiveviewer_lr.php

D. Vehicles

1. Ships

2. Submersibles

a. Manned

b. Un-manned i. ROV

ii. AUV

• Non-autonomous assets have shortcomings comparable to ships

ii. An AUV – Glider

• ‘Unpowered’ vehicle• High endurance• Adequate payload

capacity• Programmable• Communicates

VII. What is a glider?

Magic!?

• Forward motion without power!

• Takes instructions and reports back

VI. Survey of coastal ocean to 200 m

VIII. Types of data

• Real time

• Discrete/’cleaned’

• Archived

Uses

• Real time – Tracking a current event– Can be unwieldy

• Discrete– Loss of time/event line– Economical

• Archived – Analyzing changes in parameters– Usually distilled

IX. Examples of data available

http://www.osdpd.noaa.gov/PSB/EPS/SST/data/FS_km14nat00.gif

SST:

http://marine.rutgers.edu/cool/show/?file=../regions/bigbight/sst/noaa/2006/img/060712.193.0938.n12.jpg

Chlorophyll

• http://marine.rutgers.edu/cool/show/?file=../regions/bigbight/chlor/fy1d/2006/img/060712.193.1217.fyd.jpg

Salinity

• Ocean salinity http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/earth/Water/images/salinity_big_gif_image.html

Questions that combine data sets

How do winds influence chlorophyll – plankton?

Compare salinity data and temperature data

End

End

Mid-Atlantic Bight

• http://www.windows.ucar.edu/

• Ocean salinity http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/earth/Water/images/salinity_big_gif_image.html

Sea surface salinity

• http://www7320.nrlssc.navy.mil/global_ncom/mab.html

Bight

• A bend or curve, especially in a shoreline.

• A wide bay formed by such a bend or curve.

Mid-Atlantic Bight

Cape Cod

Cape Hatteras

Sea surface temperature anomalies – latitude/temperature anomalies

Gulf of Maine

• http://www.gomoos.org/buoy/satellite.html

BI106 material

• http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/educate/educate.shtml