News
Tenth Refresh of the Irminger Sea Array
On August 27th, a team of 13 scientists and engineers boarded the R/V Neil Armstrong in Reykjavik, Iceland to head to the Irminger Sea Array. Most of the array’s infrastructure and instrumentation was shipped from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) in mid-July to Iceland, where it arrived in mid-August. Part of the scientific party traveled to Reykjavik in mid-August to reassemble the moorings and conduct a “burn-in,” a test period for the power, data, telemetry, and instrument systems to ensure everything is operational prior to loading the vessel.
The Irminger Sea Array is in a region with high wind and large surface waves in the North Atlantic and is one of the few places on Earth with deep-water formation that feeds the large-scale thermohaline circulation. Data collected by the Irminger Sea Array are providing critical insights into circulation patterns, ocean processes, and possible climate-induced changes occurring in this important oceanic area.
After an ~ two-day transit (550 nautical miles) to the array site off the tip of Greenland, the team will recover and deploy four moorings and three gliders over the next two and a half weeks. They will conduct CTD (conductivity, temperature, and depth) casts at the deployment/recovery sites and carry out shipboard sampling for field validation of the platforms and sensors that will remain in the water for the next year.
In addition to the recovery and deployment operations, the team will be conducting some CTD calibration casts in support of OSNAP-GDWBC (Overturning in the Subpolar North Atlantic Program-Greenland Deep Western Boundary Current). A participant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will also be on board using “Big Eye” binoculars mounted on a forward deck to make observations of marine mammals during the transit and in the Irminger Sea.
[media-caption path="https://oceanobservatories.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Big-eyes.jpg" link="#"]Large, deck-mounted binoculars known as “big eyes” are used for marine mammal observations. NOAA Research Wildlife Biologist Peter Duley will be aboard the R/V Neil Armstrong watching for marine life in the Irminger Sea. Credit: Al Plueddemann ©WHOI.[/media-caption]The Irminger Team will also be testing out some equipment modifications on this deployment. One change is an updated satellite telemetry system. This system would provide higher bandwidth allowing better and quicker data transmission from the global surface mooring potentially saving power, and better remote command and control of the mooring systems. Another change is a revised mounting scheme for the glider optode, which measures dissolved oxygen concentrations in the water column. The new mount may provide better in-air measurements during glider surfacing. The in-air measurements allow scientists to characterize the changing accuracy of the instrument over time.
“It’s always a challenge to get ready for this month-long expedition to this remote, but critical region, but we are ready and eager to get there,” said John Lund, Chief Scientist for Irminger 10. “We are pleased to play a part in collecting data that scientists are using to better understand changes occurring in this region, with implications for both weather and climate.”
The team will reporting regular updates from the field. Bookmark this page so you can follow along on their progress.
Read MoreOOI Engineers Develop New Rechargeable Lithium-ion Battery Pack
By John Lund, Research Associate, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
The final deployment of the Coastal Pioneer Offshore Mooring (CP04OSPM-00016) was the first deployment of a prototype rechargeable lithium-ion battery pack. The deployment was a success with the battery pack providing power throughout the entire 6.5-month deployment.
Working with Mathews Associates Inc. the OOI engineering team developed a drop-in replacement lithium-ion rechargeable battery pack to replace the original one-time use alkaline packs. Each alkaline pack consists of 72 D-sized batteries that are fabricated into a hexagonal assembly. Nine of these battery packs are fitted into a buoy battery chassis that fits inside the buoy well. The packs are wired together in parallel to provide the required voltage to power the computer (buoy controller) responsible for telemetry and data-logging.
Pioneer moorings are nominally deployed for 6-month intervals. Variability in ship scheduling requires that the buoys be capable of operating for 7+ months. The alkaline battery chassis was designed to fit enough packs to power the buoy for the planned duration and or until the recovery ship arrived.
[media-caption path="https://oceanobservatories.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Lithium-batteries.jpg" link="#"]Lithium Battery chassis during testing and integration with the buoy computer. Battery chassis is on the left. Buoy end cap with Linux computer board on the bench. Wire Following Profiler center on the floor collects the majority of the Profiler Mooring data set.[/media-caption]The Offshore mooring was selected to be a test mooring because it is one of the deeper moorings in the New England Shelf (NES) Pioneer Array and as such logs and transmits more data than a shallower mooring. The larger data sets mean that the buoy up-time, and therefore power usage, is greater than one in shallower water so this would be a tougher test of the lithium-ion packs.
Although there is an increased cost to purchasing the initial set of lithium batteries there are many advantages to the rechargeable batteries. Because the alkaline packs are conservatively sized for the deployment there is often a considerable amount of power remaining in the packs when they are recovered, yet this remaining power is insufficient for another full deployment, and new batteries must be used. The chief benefit of the rechargeable batteries will be to keep the one-time use alkaline packs from going to the landfill (~1 ton per year). There is also a considerable labor savings of not having to deconstruct and reload the chassis frames with replacement batteries. Our calculations indicate that we will break in terms of procurement cost compared to alkaline batteries in approximately six years and that the lithium-ion batteries have enough charge cycles (500) to last the duration of the program. With any luck these may be the last batteries we need to purchase for the Profiler Moorings!
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New Controller Latest in OOI Innovations
Having equipment in the water around the clock for six months at a time provides many challenges for the land-based OOI engineering team charged with keeping the equipment operational so there is a continual flow of data to shore. Maintaining consistent, reliable power for the ocean observing equipment is at the top of this list of challenges.
OOI’s data-collecting instruments attached to the moorings run on batteries charged by renewable wind and solar energy. OOI is in the process of replacing the current solar panels with new panels that are more efficient at generating energy, even when shaded. To supplement this upgrade, the OOI arrays are also being outfitted with a brand-new solar controller to manage the energy going into the batteries. Like with the new solar panels, OOI engineers looked for a controller that was available commercially for easier repair and replacement.
“What was important to us was finding a way to use these new solar panels in the best, most optimal way,” said Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) engineer Marshall Swartz. “We looked for a company that would help us specify and build a customized algorithm for a controller that would optimize the functionality of the panels by taking into account battery temperatures.”
[media-caption path="/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/DSC0486-2.jpeg" link="#"]Buoys get quite the workout when they are in the water for six months and more. Powered by wind, solar, and batteries, OOI has recently improved the way energy from the solar panels is managed with new controllers. Credit: ©WHOI, Darlene Trew Crist. [/media-caption]
Some larger, older controllers can consume up to 3-5% of the energy coming into the device, but the new controller is smaller and more efficient, helping to optimize the amount of energy harvested.
Temperature conditions play a big role in how effectively the energy is managed. Changing battery temperatures require the controller to adjust its charge settings to maintain battery life and capacity. The controllers used on OOI moorings sense battery temperature and automatically adjust to assure best conditions to assure reliable operation.
“It’s really essential for us to maintain the proper charge levels for existing temperature conditions,” said Swartz. The OOI buoys encounter a wide range of temperatures: from subfreezing temperatures up to 40°C (over 100°F) when a buoy is sitting in the parking lot before it is deployed. When the buoys are deployed, water temperatures can vary widely from -1 to 33°C (~30 to 91°F), depending on seasonal conditions.
The new controller automatically regulates the amount of electricity going into the battery under such varying temperature conditions. If the wind turbines are generating more energy than the battery needs, for example, the controllers direct excess power into an external load that dissipates heat and adds resistance to the spinning of the wind turbines, preventing the turbines from spinning too fast, possibly damaging their bearings.
“As parts of the OOI infrastructure need replacing or to be upgraded, this offers us the opportunity to find more efficient, and often times, off-the-shelf, less-expensive replacements that will help us keep the arrays functioning and data flowing,” Swartz said. “It’s a winning combination for all parts of the operation.”
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Abstracts Welcome for OSM Session on California Current and NE Pacific Ocean
Abstracts are being sought for a session on data and modeling of the California Current System and the Northeast Pacific Ocean during the 2024 Ocean Science Meeting in February in New Orleans. Edward P. Dever, Oregon State University, Richard K. Dewey, Ocean Networks Canada, and Kashish Sadhwani, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay organized the session to maximize use of modeling efforts in the region and to foster further collaboration among researchers.
“The Northeast Pacific Ocean offers researchers opportunities to study many regionally important processes that impact productivity, seasonal hypoxia, and ocean acidification,” said Edward P. Dever, of Oregon State University, who is chair of the session. “We hope to bring researchers together to share their insights about this important region and to help facilitate collaboration among those working in different areas of the Northeast Pacific.”
The deadline for abstract submission is September 13, 2023. Submit here. A description of the session follows:
OT019 – Sustained Data and Models in Support of Research in the California Current System and Northeast Pacific Ocean
The Northeast Pacific Ocean as defined by the California Current System, Salish Sea, and Gulf of Alaska, has long been a focus of sustained observing and modeling efforts. Regionally important physical processes include coastal upwelling, river plumes, and responses to interannual variability (e.g., ENSO, the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, marine heatwaves, and other events). These processes impact primary productivity, phyto- and zooplankton community structures, seasonal hypoxia, and ocean acidification. In this session, we seek to share insights and facilitate collaboration between observations and models and among researchers working in different areas of the Northeast Pacific. We invite contributions in any of the following broad topics:
- syntheses of sustained data sets for model initialization
- forcing and validation
- best practices for inter comparison and networking across observations
- modeled and observed interactions between different sub-regions
- estimation of rate processes
- advances in bio-acoustic, biogeochemical, and bio-optical measurements, and
- predictions of physical and ecosystem responses across relevant temporal and spatial scales.
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RCA Embarks on a 41-day Operations and Maintenance Expedition
Watch live video here.
The numbers are remarkable for the Regional Cabled Array’s (RCA) Operations and Maintenance Expedition that left Newport, Oregon aboard the R/V Thomas G. Thompson on Sunday August 13. Because of its complexity and the need to move 100 different instruments, the expedition consists of four legs over 41-days. The legs are separated by ~2-3 days port call at NOAA Marine Operation Center in Newport, Oregon. A science team of 12 is conducting the scientific operations, with their work supported by an engineering team of 20 (not all onboard). The Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) Jason, operated by a team of 12 from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, is recovering and deploying instrumentation on the RCA for the duration of the expedition.
Finally, 25 students in the University of Washington’s VISIONS Program are onboard during various legs to gain real sea-going experience and work side by side with the scientific team. Additionally, six other guest participants will be onboard, including a children’s author, engineers, and scientists.
The RCA annual expedition is always an exciting opportunity to watch real-life operations at sea. Operations will be live-streamed here. Details about the expedition, who’s involved, and what’s happening and planned can be found here. Daily updates can be found here.
[video width="608" height="1080" mp4="https://oceanobservatories.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Thompson-loading.mp4"][/video] Read MoreSensor Summer School Curriculum and Video Available
The Ocean Observatories Initiative Facility Board (OOIFB) hosted a 2023 summer school (July 17-21, 2023) at Oregon State University in Corvallis, Oregon that focused on OOI optical attenuation and absorption data. A mix of advanced graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, and early career scientists participated in this hands-on learning experience about how to access, analyze, and interpret data from the Sea-Bird AC-S. Data from the AC-S is used to characterize the absorption and scattering of light in seawater, which provides information on phytoplankton biomass in the measured ocean region.
So others may benefit from what was learned, the curriculum is available online here.
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Spreading Curiosity about Ocean Science with Summer Visitors
Summertime brings students from all over the country to Woods Hole, Massachusetts to learn about ocean science. June and July 2023 were particularly busy, with the Coastal and Global Scale Nodes (CGSN) division of the Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) hosting four different student groups. CGSN offers student tours of OOI facilities and the chance to talk directly with an ocean scientist or engineer. They engage with students this way in the hope of increasing student interest in marine science and possibly encouraging them to pursue an ocean-related career. During the tours and presentations, students learn about the moorings and vehicles OOI deploys throughout the year and the dissemination of ocean data collected. These hands-on experiences give student visitors the opportunity to see the full scale and complexity of OOI operations.
UMass-Dartmouth REU Students Visit
On June 26, 12 community college engineering student and faculty from a National Science Foundation (NSF) sponsored Research Experience for Undergraduate (REU) at the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth (UMass-Dartmouth) visited OOI. CGSN staff provided a tour of their operations, including ocean-observing equipment stored outdoors because of its size.
[media-caption path="https://oceanobservatories.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Sheri-with-REUs.jpg" link="#"]CGSN team members, Dr. Sheri White (blue jeans to right) and Irene Duran (next to Dr. White) gave a tour to UMass-Dartmouth REU students. Photo by: Kama Theiler © WHOI.[/media-caption] [media-caption path="https://oceanobservatories.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Colin-Dobson-with-REU.jpg" link="#"]A UMass-Dartmouth REU student asks CGSN glider expert Colin Dobson a question regarding the gliders he works on. Photo by: Kama Theiler © WHOI.[/media-caption]PEP Students Visit
In early July, the CGSN team gave a presentation to Woods Hole Partnership Education Program (PEP) participants, who spend 10-weeks in Woods Hole at WHOI, the Marine Biological Laboratory, Woodwell Climate Research Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Northeast Fisheries Science Center, Sea Education Association, or the United States Geological Survey’s Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center. The PEP program is designed primarily for college juniors and seniors from underrepresented groups in marine and ocean sciences who want to spend a summer gaining practical experience in marine and environmental science.
Summer 2023 is the 15th summer of the PEP program in Woods Hole. Many former PEP students have returned to Woods Hole and WHOI both as students and professionals (including CGSN’s Irene Duran). Benjamin Harden, PEP professor, stated that OOI’s community outreach is a “great way for these students to hear about the frontiers of oceanography and really helped many of them frame possible careers in the field.”
Black Girls Dive Foundation Visit
July 25th, CGSN’s Electrical Team provided a workshop to the Black Girls Dive Foundation (BGDF) program participants. BGDF provides the space and opportunity to empower young black women to explore their STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) identity through marine science and conservation, and SCUBA diving. While visiting OOI, the BGDF students learned about pH and concerns about increasing ocean acidification. The students collected local sea water and with the help of the CGSN Instrument Team determined its pH with a probe they calibrated using a microcontroller.
[media-caption path="https://oceanobservatories.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/BGDF-with-AUV.jpg" link="#"]During their visit to WHOI, BGDF students had the opportunity to get up close to check out an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV). Photo by: Jayne Doucette © WHOI.[/media-caption] [media-caption path="https://oceanobservatories.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Jennifer-with-BGDF.jpg" link="#"]CGSN Instrument Lead Jennifer Batryn (far left) shows how she checks OOI instruments operations on her laptop to one of the BGDF visitors. Photo by: Jayne Doucette © WHOI.[/media-caption]SEA Participants Visit
Also in late July a group of students participating in the Sea Education Association’s (SEA’s) High School program visited OOI’s Facility LOSOS on WHOI’s Quissett Campus. This is a study abroad program in Woods Hole for undergraduate, gap year, and high school students, that combines studies in ocean science with at-sea experiences. The students spent an afternoon learning about OOI, its operations, how data are collected and disbursed, and what scientists are learning from OOI data.
[media-caption path="https://oceanobservatories.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Dee-and-Jon-With-SEA-students-2.jpg" link="#"]CGSN team members Dee Emrich (standing left) and John Lund explained OOI operations to high school students from the Sea Education Program. Photo by: Dr. Sheri White © WHOI.[/media-caption] [media-caption path="https://oceanobservatories.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Irene-with-SEA-students.jpg" link="#"]CGSN Engineer Irene Duran (maroon top in center) showed mooring components to high school students from the Sea Education Program. Photo by: Paul Whelan © WHOI.[/media-caption] Read MoreNew Features of Data Explorer Demo
In case you missed it, here is a video of the OOI Town Hall on July 26, 2023 during which the new features of Data Explorer were demonstrated and questions answered.
[embed]https://vimeo.com/849129117[/embed] Read MoreOOIFB Bio-Optics Sensor Summer School Happening Now
The OOIFB is hosting a 2023 summer school this week (July 17-21, 2023) at Oregon State University (OSU) in Corvallis focusing on OOI optical attenuation and absorption data. A mix of advanced graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, and early career scientists have traveled to Oregon to participate in a hands-on learning experience about how to access, analyze, and interpret data from the Sea-Bird AC-S. Data from the AC-S is used to characterize the absorption and scattering of light in seawater, which provides information on phytoplankton biomass in the measured ocean region.
The workshop’s daily agenda is jam packed. OSU Associate Professor and AC-S expert Andrew Barnard is leading the lecture portion of the workshop to ensure participants have a clear understanding of what the AC-S measures, how the instrument works, and how to interpret the collected data. Coastal Endurance Principal Investigator Ed Dever, who was instrumental in organizing the workshop, will also present an introduction to AC-S and related OOI measurements.
Each day participants are assigned data-related homework, so they can learn data analysis skills with the help of OOI data experts. OOI data experts Chris Wingard of the Coastal Endurance team and Wendi Ruef of the Regional Cabled Array are on hand all week to help participants work with the data. Data expert Jennifer Batryn of the Coastal and Global Scale Nodes Team will be lending a hand virtually.
OOI uses the Sea-Bird AC-S as its spectrophotometer, referring to it as “OPTAA: optical attenuation and absorbance instrument.” The optical attenuation and absorption data provides information on the relative biomass of different phytoplankton size classes and phytoplankton functional types, estimates of biogeochemical proxies, and may be used to validate remote sensing measurements. AC-S sensors are deployed on most of the OOI platforms, including coastal, cabled, and high latitude moorings and are a significant proportion of the overall sensors deployed.
Kendra Daly, OOIFB chair, who proposed the idea and helped execute the workshop said, “We thought what a great opportunity to gather OOI data experts, put them in the same room for a week with those wanting to use these data in their research, and watch the synergy happen! The experience is sure to have a multiplier effect. OOI data experts will benefit from the data users’ experience, while the data users will end up being OOI data experts themselves.”
To maximize the usefulness of the workshop, the workshop curriculum was made available online.
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Call for Applications for OOIFB
~ Call for Applications ~
OOI Facility Board
Application Deadline: August 6, 2023
The Ocean Observatories Initiative Facility Board (OOIFB) provides independent input and guidance regarding the management and operation of the National Science Foundation-funded Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI). The OOIFB works to expand scientific and public awareness of OOI, and ensure that the oceanographic community is kept informed of developments of OOI.
The responsibilities of the OOIFB may include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Serving as the prime scientific and technical conduit between the oceanographic community and NSF regarding OOI.
- Examining the accomplishments and work flow of the OOI Operator, in order to provide feedback regarding the OOI Annual Work Plans (AWPs)
- Via workshops, community meetings, and/or other mechanisms, stimulate and engage the user community in order to keep the accomplishments of the OOI at the cutting edge of scientific inquiry and technological innovation.
- Developing and implementing strategies to expand scientific and public awareness of the unique scientific and technological opportunities of the OOI.
- Helping to identify collaborative relationships with potential governmental, industrial, educational, and international partners in the OOI, where appropriate.
- Ensure fair and consistent access to the OOI by all sectors of the user community.
Applications should be submitted to Annette DeSilva at the OOIFB Administrative Support Office, and must include a letter of interest and a CV. The statement of interest should highlight the applicant’s experience using observatory data, as well as how the applicant has supported the introduction and/or inclusion of ocean sciences to underrepresented communities and have fostered an environment of respect in their research endeavors. Applicants who have not yet had the opportunity for such experience should note how their work will further OOIFB’s commitment to diversity.
Please note, applications cannot be accepted from individuals affiliated with the OOI Program Facility institutions (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Oregon State University, and the University of Washington), individuals under contract with the OOI Program, and individuals from institutions already represented on the OOIFB (the current list of OOIFB members is available HERE).
Applications are due by August 6, 2023. Applications will be reviewed by the OOIFB, who will give due consideration to the qualifications of applicants, as well as the maintenance of gender, career level, discipline, and regional balance on the OOIFB. For more information about OOIFB and its activities, please visit the website or contact Kendra Daly, OOIFB Chair.