Project Deliverable D50 Report on Best Practices ... - ESONET NoE

The oxygen sensor in the generic specification can address several aspects of
biogeochemistry. Oxygen itself is important for aerobic life in the ocean which includes all
metazoans (e.g. zooplankton, fish, and benthic invertebrates). Oxygen is primarily replenished
in the ocean by inputs related to photosynthesis and equilibration at the air-sea interface. By
making some crude assumptions one can estimate how much oxygen has been utilized by
measuring how much remains compared to saturation levels (apparent oxygen utilisation
[AOU]), Garcia et al. 2006). So, variations in oxygen minimum zones, as well as oxygen
dynamics in the rest of the water column are of interest. The generic module will also be able
to make sensitive measurements of how oxygen consecrations relate to turbidity and
temperature, which both have connections to time variant respiration and/or remineralisation.
As sensor technology develops biogeochemical sensors will likely transition from specialized
to generic in the coming months and years. This will include Chl-a, pCO2, pCH4 and pH.
Moreover the more specialized measurement of particulate fluxes greatly augments the
breadth of biogeochemical themes that can be addressed. The most elemental of these themes
is oceanic carbon and greenhouse gas uptake and storage dynamics and estimating how
anthropogenic change might alter the efficiency of the biological pump.
The key ecological sensor in the generic specification is the hydrophone(s) which will be
capable of detecting marine mammals. Currently there are hydrophone based systems that can
detect the position and species of mammal sounds and thus come up with estimates of density
and distribution. Other sounds can also be detected including anthropogenic sounds like those
of passing ships, rain, and the sounds of certain plankton and fish. Including these systems
with other ecology systems will provide verification data that is need to improve the detection
more sounds. ADCP systems are sensitive to zooplankton and fish distributions, as well as
currents. For example the relative density variations associative with diurnal vertical
migrations and their variation from hours to decades can be quantified and calibrated (Flagg
and Smith 1989, Kaufmann et al. 1995). The addition of cameras and active acoustic systems
like scanning sonar or synthetic aperture systems can greatly augment the quantification of
abundances. Fluorometers, zooplankton samplers, and advanced microbial sensing systems
also add to the impact of the generic system to address the diverse set of ecological question
in <strong>Deliverable</strong> 11.
4.4.1.2.4 Introduction to specific sensors examples
Several examples have been presented in key notes speeches and case study during the
workshop.
Specific sensors and parameters are those that are not listed as generic ones in the previous
section. They are specific to the scientific objectives of the studied area, for instance OBS for
seismic zones like in Marmara Sea. Typical output data are acoustic data, HD video and
photos, biogeochemical fluxes, and biological and ecological parameters such as population
density and biodiversity. Several examples have been presented in keynote speeches and case
studies during the workshop. Many examples are given in the ESONET document “D13 -
Science Modules of the European Seas Observatory NETwork (ESONET).”
4.4.1.3 Key note speeches, practices from <strong>Project</strong>s and case study from demonstration
missions:
<strong>Deliverable</strong> #50 - update October 2010 19