Ocean observations

Introduction

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Essential Oceanic Climate Variables

The following are considered essential ocean climate variables by the OOPC (http://ioc3.unesco.org/oopc/obs/ecv.php) that are currently feasible with current observational systems.

Atmosphere Surface

Air Temperature
Precipitation (meteorology)
evaporation
Air Pressure, sea level pressure (SLP)
Surface radiative fluxes
Surface thermodynamic fluxes
Wind speed and direction
Surface wind stress
Water vapor

Ocean Surface

Sea surface temperature (SST)
Sea surface salinity (SSS)
Sea level
Sea state
Sea ice
Ocean current
Ocean color (for biological activity)
Carbon dioxide partial pressure (pCO2)

Ocean Subsurface

Temperature
Salinity
Ocean current
Nutrients
Carbon
Ocean tracers
Phytoplankton

Ocean Observation Sources

Satellite

There is a composite network of satellites that generate observations (http://ioc3.unesco.org/oopc/obs/surface_sat.php). These include:

Type	Variables Observed	Responsible Organizations
Infrared (IR)	SST, sea ice	CEOS, IGOS, CGMS
AMSR-class microwave	SST, wind speed, sea ice	CEOS, IGOS, CGMS
Surface vector wind (two wide-swath scatterometers desired)	surface vector wind, sea ice	CEOS, IGOS, CGMS
Ocean color	chlorophyll concentration (biomass of phytoplankton)	IOCCG
high-precision altimetry	sea-level anomaly from steady state	CEOS, IGOS, CGMS
low-precision altimetry	sea level	CEOS, IGOS, CGMS
Synthetic aperture radar	sea ice, sea state	CEOS, IGOS, CGMS

In Situ

There is a composite network of in situ observations (http://ioc3.unesco.org/oopc/obs/surface_insitu.php). These include:

Type	Variables Observed	Responsible Organizations
Global surface drifting buoy array with 5 degree resolution (1250 total)	SST, SLP, Current (based on position change)	JCOMM Data Buoy Cooperation Panel (DBCP)
Global tropical moored buoy network (about 120 moorings)	typically SST and surface vector wind, but can also include SLP, current, air-sea flux variables	JCOMM DBCP Tropical Moored Buoy Implementation Panel (TIP)
Volunteer Observing Ship (VOS) fleet	all feasible surface ECVs	JCOMM Ship Observations Team (SOT)
VOSClim	all feasible surface ECVs plus extensive ship metadata	JCOMM Ship Observations Team (SOT)
Global referencing mooring network (29 moorings)	all feasible surface ECVs	OceanSITES
GLOSS core sea-level network, plus regional/national networks	sea level	JCOMM GLOSS
Carbon VOS	pCO2, SST, SSS	IOCCP
Sea ice buoys	sea ice	JCOMM DBCP IABP and IPAB

Subsurface

There is a composite network of subsurface observations (http://ioc3.unesco.org/oopc/obs/subsurface.php). These include:

Type	Variables Observed	Responsible Organizations
Repeat XBT (Expendable bathythermograph) line network (41 lines)	Temperature	JCOMM Ship Observations Team (SOT)
Global tropical moored buoy network (~120 moorings)	Temperature, Salinity, current, other feasible autonomously observable ECVs	JCOMM DBCP Tropical Moored Buoy Implementation Panel (TIP)
Reference mooring network (29 moorings)	all autonomously observable ECVs	OceanSITES
Sustained and repeated ship-based hydrography network	All feasible ECVs, including those that depend on obtaining water samples	IOCCP, CLIVAR, other national efforts
Argo (oceanography) network	temperature, salinity, current	Argo
Critical current and transport monitoring	temperature, heat, freshwater, carbon transports, mass	CLIVAR, IOCCP , OceanSITES
Regional and global synthesis programmes	inferred currents, transports gridded fileds of all ECVs	GODAE, CLIVAR, other national efforts

Historical Data Available

A variety of historical data sets is available here: http://www.whoi.edu/page.do?pid=7140

This site includes links to the ARGO Float Data, The Data Library and Archives (DLA), the Falmouth Monthly Climate Reports, Martha's Vineyard Coastal Observatory, the Multibeam Archive, the Seafloor Data and Observation Visualization Environment (SeaDOVE): A Web-served GIS Database of Multi-scalar Seafloor Data, Seafloor Sediments Data Collection, the Upper Ocean Mooring Data Archive, the U.S. GLOBEC Data System, U.S. JGOFS Data System, and the WHOI Ship Data-Grabber System.

There are a variety of data sets in a data library listed at Columbia University:

http://iridl.ldeo.columbia.edu/SOURCES/

This library includes some of the following:

LEVITUS94 is the World Ocean Atlas as of 1994, an atlas of objectively analyzed fields of major ocean parameters at the annual, seasonal, and monthly time scales. It is superceeded by WOA98.

NOAA NODC WOA98 is the World Ocean Atlas as of 1998, an atlas of objectively analyzed fields of major ocean parameters at monthly, seasonal, and annual time scales. Superceeded by WOA01.

NOAA NODC WOA01 is the World Ocean Atlas 2001, an atlas of objectively analyzed fields of major ocean parameters at monthly, seasonal, and annual time scales. Replaced by WOA05.

NOAA NODC WOA05 is the World Ocean Atlas 2005, an atlas of objectively analyzed fields of major ocean parameters at monthly, seasonal, and annual time scales.

Future Developments

Areas requiring research and development (http://ioc3.unesco.org/oopc/obs/challenges.php):

• Satellite observations with higher resolution and accuracy and more spectral bands from geostationary satellites
  
• improved capability for ocean color observations in coastal and turbid waters
  
• improved interpretation of sea-ice data from satellites
  
• satellite measurement of salinity
  
• Observing system evaluation and design, including improvements in air-sea flux parameterizations.
  
• Improvements in ocean platforms, including increased capabilities for Argo floats
  
• improved glider technology and mooring technology.
  
• New development in ocean sensors and systems, including improved bio-fouling protection, autonomous water sampling systems, optical and acoustic systems, airborne variable sensors, and two-way, low-cost, low-power telecommunications.
  
• New and improved capability to measure biogeochemical variables, nutrients, and dissolved oxygen and carbon dioxide, as well as to identify organisms.
  
• Improved instruments, including near-surface current meters, in-water radiometers, sensors for air-sea interface variables and turbulent fluxes, and VOS sensor systems.
  

The future of oceanic observation systems:
Guided unmanned underwater vehicles (http://rucool.marine.rutgers.edu/atlantic/)

Organizations

GOOS (The Global Ocean Observing System) http://www.ioc-goos.org
GCOS (Global CLimate Observing System) http://www.wmo.int
IOOS (Integrated Ocean Observing System) http://www.ocean.us/
Argo () http://www.argo.net/ , http://www.argo.ucsd.edu/
GODAE (Global Ocean Data Experiment) http://www.godae.org/Observing-the-ocean.html
OOPC (Ocean Observation Panel for Climate) http://ioc3.unesco.org/oopc/
OOI (Ocean Observatories Initiative) http://www.oceanleadership.org/ocean_observing

References

http://ioc3.unesco.org/oopc/
http://www.ioc-goos.org
http://www.wmo.int
http://www.ocean.us/
http://www.oceanleadership.org/ocean_observing
http://www.argo.ucsd.edu/
http://www.godae.org/Observing-the-ocean.html
http://rucool.marine.rutgers.edu/atlantic/
http://www.whoi.edu/page.do?pid=7140