A global ocean timeseries observatory system (OceanSITES)

Uwe Sendand

Robert WellerCo-Chairs, OceanSITES

A global ocean timeseries observatory system is under development internationally

• Started as GOOS/CLIVAR/POGO sponsored (via OOPC/COOP) activity

• The system is multidisciplinary in nature, providing physical, meteorological, chemical, biological and geophysical timeseries observations

• Goal is to make the data are publicly available as soon as received and quality-controlled by the owner/operator

• An International Steering Team provides guidance, coordination, outreach, and oversight for the implementation, data management and capacity building (18 scientists operating sites, representing all ocean disciplines)

• A pilot system (2001-2006) has been defined consisting of all operating sites and those planned to be established within 5 years, subject to evaluation in terms of the qualifying criteria by the Science Team.

Near-term map of the assembly of global timeseries sites

Science applications (monitor, detect, understand and predict):• CO2 uptake by the ocean• biological productivity, biomass, ecosystem variables and fluxes• air-sea fluxes• thermohaline changes, water mass transformation• rapid or episodic changes (mixed-layer, blooms, convection, MOC, etc)• mass/heat transports (boundary current, over/throughflows, MOC)• geophysics

Operational applications:• reference data for forecasting systems (in-situ biogeochemical)• constraints (e.g. transports) for assimilation runs• detection of events• validation of products

Technical applications (reference/calibrate/verify/...) :• air-sea fluxes• remotely sensed variables (SST, wind, color)• sensor calibration (VOS, T/S of floats, ...)• model statistics, physics and parameterizations (and their variability)• providing sound signals for float naviation, acoustic tomography • testbed for new instrumentation

A realistic vision is a sustained global network of observatories, coordinated among many countries, serving many disciplines, providing data and products freely and in real-time...

Sustained implementation and operation will be facilitated by the following developments which exist or are under way......

Geodetic/oceanographic mooring

Development #1: Routine multi-disciplinary observations (physical, atmospheric, biogeochemical, geophysical, biological, tsunami)

Bottom pressure

Also zooplankton, fish, mammals...

Labrador Sea convection and CO2

Development #2: Telemetry systems and standardization

Spar buoy for high-bandwidth satellite telemetry and power generationAcoustic:

- mooring sensors buoy- bottom sensors buoy

Inductive:- mooring sensors buoy

Cables:- mooring/bottom sensors shore

Satellite links:- Iridium, ARGOS- high-bandwidth systems

Glider relais:- acoustic link to mooring/ bottom sensors, transmission via satellite when at surface

Standardization:- agreed protocols (e.g.TCPIP) and hardware standards (signal levels, baud rate, acoustic encoding,etc)

Development #3: Mooring technologies

Available now or in near future: surface and subsurface moorings, winched systems, cabled moorings, high-latitude spar buoys, virtual moorings, under-ice moorings,...

reducedfouling,

reducedvandalism

Development #4: Interdisciplinary and international CoordinationInternational coordination is critical for sharing resources, addressing global issues, standardization and harmonization, attracting and serving a user community, data management, visibility and advocacy... OceanSITES

The US ORION global mooring community merged the interests of physical oceanography, air-sea interaction, biogeochemistry, and geophysics to identify a prioritized list of sites of high multi-disciplinary interest.

Sharing and coordination across disciplines strengthens sites for sustained moorings.

Seeking collaboration with Tsunami warning buoy system !

Development #5: Globally coordinated, consistent, efficient data management (strategies, technologies, infrastructure for ocean observatories)

Need: • data from the entirety of operational systems have to be easily available, in a single operation, in homogeneous formats• metadata vocabulary independent of sensors and platforms and disciplines

Solutions:Infrastructure:- centralized global ftp servers (ARGO, GOSUD, Global Drifter Center,…)- distributed systems OpenDap (some major projects are starting… )- Catalogues (JCommOps, EDIOS)

Syntax:- NetCDF format definitions (ARGO, OceanSITES,…)- GTS formats (DBCP, VOS, ARGO,….)

Progress made within single projects/communities (ARGO, GOSUD, OceanSITES, Mersea…)

Data management (continued….)

Plan and Vision for OceanSITES

- A Data Team has been created to set up the Data Management system (Chair: S.Pouliquen)

- 2 global data portals based on OpenDap structure (under construction in OceanSITES)

- NetCDF format has been defined in consistency with other/prior program (e.g. ARGO) and with the US DMAC philosophy

- multi-disciplinary data from all (public) deep-ocean timeseries sites will be available in real-time, with single queries

- more challenging since several communities need to come together

Development #6: Sustained support (funding, infrastructure, organization, operation)

GEO (Group on Earth Observation) http://earthobservations.org Achieve comprehensive, coordinated and sustained observations of the Earth system• to improve monitoring of the state of the Earth• to increase understanding of Earth processes• to enhance prediction of the behavior of the Earth system. Timely, quality long-term global information as a basis for sound decision making.

The ocean component is a major element of GEO, and will include an observatory/mooring network. Many countries are committing to GEO and to setting up the GEOSS.

NOAA: http://www.noaa.gov The US NOAA Office of Global Programs is supporting a number of sustained “ocean reference stations“, with a projected growth towards a larger contribution to a global network.

GMES (Global Monitoring for Environment and Security) http://www.gmes.info A concerted European effort to build end-to-end system for monitoring the environment and increasing civil security• make environmental and security-related information available • provide enhanced or new services It is planned to include an organization for operational ocean observation, which is a natural home for an operational mooring activity.

Development #7: Interaction with users and definition/provision of products

Add value to data by providing products and indicators, e.g.- intensity of processes (air-sea fluxes, critical vertical/horizontal exchanges, productivity,....)- state and health of the ocean&atmosphere (physics/climate, ecosystem, inventories, chemicals, populations,...)- forecast/warning indicators (El Nino, NAO, blooms, pollution, earthquake,...)

Like other operational systems, mooring needs also have to be defined by applications and users

• environmental and climate monitoring• modelling and forecasting (validation) “reference stations“• management of natural/living resources• hazard warning and mitigation• ....

Definition of an ocean timeseries site in the global system (requirements):

• Sustained in-situ observations at fixed geographic locations of ocean/climate related quantities at a sampling rate high enough to unambiguously resolve the signals of interest.

• Transport sections using whatever technique are included in choke points and major boundary current systems (moorings, gliders, ship ADCP, tomography, etc)

• Coastal timeseries are included when they are instrumented to have multidisciplinary impact on the global observing system and if they are not part of a national coastal buoy network.

• Any implemented site fulfilling criteria will become part of the system but has to deliver its data into the system and to demonstrate successful operation and value after 5 years.

• Real-time data telemetry of operational variables will be pursued, i.e. make effort if technically feasible

• Data should be made public in near real-time for real-time data or as soon as processed and post-calibrated for other data

Some examples:

Salinity at BRAVO in Labrador Sea

(J.Lazier 1980)

Zooplankton and NAO in subpolar N.Atlantic

(courtesy C.Reid)

More examples....

TAO temperatures in eastern Pacific

(courtesy M.McPhaden)

Mixed-layer carbon parameters at HOT

(Keeling et al.)

CIS site

March April May June

Day Number 2004

60 80 100 120 140 160

Nit

rate

( m

/l)

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

Chl

orop

hyll

(g/

l)

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1.0

1.2

1.4

1.6

PC

O2

220

240

260

280

300

320

340

360

PAP site

Example: transport sites for the thermohaline circulation

Benefits and added value of a coordinated global system:- linking up changes at different locations - harmonize/share technologies- detecting patterns - cross-community synergy, linked variables- understanding differences between regimes - common data management and access - spreading/propagation of signals/changes - common advocacy

(from N.Gruber)

(Takahashi et al 1995)

Net CO2 flux

Example: variability in carbon uptake

Example: Coordinated ecosystem changes (Chavez et al)