High-resolution monitoring of sea-surface and water column properties in the Strait of Georgia and Saanich Inlet: New instrumentation on the VENUS coastal cabled observatory
Presentation Abstract
The VENUS coastal cabled observatory, part of Ocean Networks Canada, consists of several networked stations in the Salish Sea. Instruments at each station are currently being used for real-time, high-resolution monitoring of physical, chemical, and biological conditions in Saanich Inlet and the southern Strait of Georgia. We have recently expanded our instrument array to include detailed monitoring of: 1) sea-surface conditions in the Strait of Georgia; and 2) water column properties in both the Strait of Georgia and Saanich Inlet. The VENUS Coastal Ocean Dynamics Applications Radar (CODAR) system consists of two shore-based antennae able to resolve changes in the direction and magnitude of surface currents in the Strait of Georgia on an hourly basis. The CODAR system is complemented by the installation of the “Seakeeper” seawater monitoring system (temperature, salinity, oxygen, chlorophyll, and turbidity) aboard the BC Ferries, MV Queen of Alberni, which transits between Vancouver Island and Vancouver eight times a day. We have also recently completed the installation of a buoy-profiling system (BPS) in Saanich Inlet. The BPS is set-up for real-time data return and consists of a surface buoy platform, meteorological station, and a profiling winch with capability for hourly vertical casts or depth-specific time series. The BPS instrument profiling package consists of a CTD package, and O2, CO2, and chlorophyll fluorescence sensors. The downward facing zooplankton acoustic profiler currently mounted on the platform will soon be accompanied by a profiling plankton imaging and counting instrument. The integration of ocean gliders into our water column monitoring program has started with the successful test deployment of the first of two Slocum gliders in Saanich Inlet in September 2013. Routine glider missions in the Strait of Georgia and Saanich Inlet are planned to start in the spring-summer of 2014.
Session Title
Session S-10D: Cross-Habitat Linkages and Landscape Scale Approaches to Ecosystem Management
Conference Track
Species and Food Webs
Conference Name
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2014 : Seattle, Wash.)
Document Type
Event
Start Date
1-5-2014 5:00 PM
End Date
1-5-2014 6:30 PM
Location
Room 6C
Genre/Form
conference proceedings; presentations (communicative events)
Contributing Repository
Digital content made available by University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Subjects – Topical (LCSH)
Seawater--Georgia, Strait of (B.C. and Wash.)--Analysis; Sea surface microlayer--Georgia, Strait of (B.C. and Wash.)
Geographic Coverage
Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.); Georgia, Strait of (B.C. and Wash.)
Rights
This resource is displayed for educational purposes only and may be subject to U.S. and international copyright laws. For more information about rights or obtaining copies of this resource, please contact University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225-9103, USA (360-650-7534; heritage.resources@wwu.edu) and refer to the collection name and identifier. Any materials cited must be attributed to the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Records, University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Type
Text
Language
English
Format
application/pdf
High-resolution monitoring of sea-surface and water column properties in the Strait of Georgia and Saanich Inlet: New instrumentation on the VENUS coastal cabled observatory
Room 6C
The VENUS coastal cabled observatory, part of Ocean Networks Canada, consists of several networked stations in the Salish Sea. Instruments at each station are currently being used for real-time, high-resolution monitoring of physical, chemical, and biological conditions in Saanich Inlet and the southern Strait of Georgia. We have recently expanded our instrument array to include detailed monitoring of: 1) sea-surface conditions in the Strait of Georgia; and 2) water column properties in both the Strait of Georgia and Saanich Inlet. The VENUS Coastal Ocean Dynamics Applications Radar (CODAR) system consists of two shore-based antennae able to resolve changes in the direction and magnitude of surface currents in the Strait of Georgia on an hourly basis. The CODAR system is complemented by the installation of the “Seakeeper” seawater monitoring system (temperature, salinity, oxygen, chlorophyll, and turbidity) aboard the BC Ferries, MV Queen of Alberni, which transits between Vancouver Island and Vancouver eight times a day. We have also recently completed the installation of a buoy-profiling system (BPS) in Saanich Inlet. The BPS is set-up for real-time data return and consists of a surface buoy platform, meteorological station, and a profiling winch with capability for hourly vertical casts or depth-specific time series. The BPS instrument profiling package consists of a CTD package, and O2, CO2, and chlorophyll fluorescence sensors. The downward facing zooplankton acoustic profiler currently mounted on the platform will soon be accompanied by a profiling plankton imaging and counting instrument. The integration of ocean gliders into our water column monitoring program has started with the successful test deployment of the first of two Slocum gliders in Saanich Inlet in September 2013. Routine glider missions in the Strait of Georgia and Saanich Inlet are planned to start in the spring-summer of 2014.
