Worth Nowlin - Gulf of Mexico Coastal Ocean Observing System ...

Global Ocean Observing System:An Overview Worth D. Nowlin. Jr. Texas A&M University Texas, USA

Sustained observations of the oceanare required for:• Understanding global change• Predicting climate variability• Protecting and managing marine ecosystems• Complying with international agreements• Protecting life and property on the coast and at sea• Providing forecasts of its future states for a varietyof uses and users.

RequirementsMaritime safety and transportv Large proportion ofglobal commercev Critically sensitive tomarine weather and climate

RequirementsNatural disaster preventionv Tropical cyclones,waves and storm surgesv Maximum impact incoastal areasv Operational forecasts andwarnings, meteorology,oceanography, hydrology

Global Ocean Observing SystemEstablished 1990byIntergovernmental Oceanographic CommissionWorld Meteorological OrganizationInternational Council of Scientific UnionsUnited Nations Environment Programme

Organized in two modules• Global Module dealing with climate andmarine services• Coastal Module dealing with neededproducts from the coastal oceanConsiderable overlap in observations and inareas of interest

Milestonesn 1995 Strategic Design for Climate Modulen 1998 Initial Action Plan for ClimateModulen 1999 Formation of Capacity Building Paneln 2003 Strategic Design for Coastal Modulen 2005 Initial Implementation Plan forCoastal Module

IN SITU OPEN OCEANMEASUREMENTS FORWEATHER AND CLIMATE

LONG-TERM GOAL: A COMPREHENSIVEOPERATIONAL SYSTEM FOR OBSERVING THEGLOBAL OCEANS.

Joint Technical Commission forOceanography and MarineMeteorology (JCOMM)Established in 2001 jointly by the WorldMeteorological Organization and theIntergovernmental Oceanographic Commission

WMO/IOC Joint Technical Commission forOceanography and Marine Meteorology• Intergovernmental coordination of the implementation of operational marinemeteorology and oceanography• Equivalent for the oceans of existing bodies for operational meteorology• Integrated operational ocean observing system and data management• New products and services, close user interaction• Involvement of all maritime countries• An implementation mechanism for global GOOS• Needs strong regional interactions and support

Present JCOMM Activities• Ship-based observations 6000 VOS observing meteorology and surfaceoceanography 120 SOOP for subsurface T&S 20+ ASAP for upper air Liaison with ocean CO 2 community• 1400 drifters observing meteorology and surfaceoceanography• 100s of ocean buoys for met & ocean• 300 sea level stations in GLOSS• Liaison with profiling float program, Argo• Sea ice monitoring• Coordination with ocean satellites

JCOMMOPS DBCP, SOT, ArgoJCOMM Support Facilities A coordination, metadata and information facility for in situplatform deployers and users http://www.jcommopsjcommops.org JCOMM Electronic Products Bulletin Operational ocean products and data fields, updatedmonthly http://iriiri.ldeo.columbia.edu/climate/monitoring//climate/monitoring/ipb/ JCOMM web site Information exchange on JCOMM documents, meetings, operationsand people To become http://jcommjcomm.net

Tide Gauges Surface Drifting Buoys Tropical Moored Buoys Ships of Opportunity Argo Floats Reference Stations Coastal Moorings Ocean Carbon Network Dedicated Ship Time System Evaluation The Ten-Year Plan for In-situ Observations2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 4040772425045792625045807 671 779 810 7723200 310 544 792610002505583291 2 6 7 10 801050 1250 125087322000 300024 430 140 0 0 0 15 4014 16 18 20250 0 1 1 1326703 486 90363000168036700686125094 41 3000291203876078612509941300029150 40820986125099413000291504082010861250994130002915040820 10Operational GPS/DORISStationsNumber of buoysNumber of mooringsHigh resolution and frequentlyrepeated lines occupiedNumber of floatsNumber of flux mooringsMoorings with climate sensorsNumber of flux sites/lines,One inventory per 10 yearsDays at sea (NOAA contribution)Product evaluation andfeedback loops implementedTotal System30 34 40 4448 77 88 94 99 100 1002000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 System % Complete

OBSERVING THE OCEANSFROM SPACE

OCEAN PARAMETERS ESTIMATEDFROM SPACE BY 2010CurrentsFresh WaterIce Surface TemperatureImageryLittoral Sediment TransportNet Heat FluxNet Short Wave RadianceOcean Color/ChlorophyllTurbidityOcean Wave CharacteristicsSalinitySea Ice Age and Edge MotionSea Surface Height/TopographySea Surface TemperatureSea Surface WindsSurface Wind StressSuspended Matter

Satellite Altimeter Data forWave ForecastsMarch-May 20010 rms diff (m) 1.6NOAA 24-hour wave forecast accuracy,estimated from ERS2 altimeter observations

Along-Track Scanning RadiometerSpecifically designed toretrieve high-precisionsea surfacetemperatures for climatemonitoring:– Highly accurateon-board calibration(

Topex/PoseidonJason AltimeterGeostrophicCurrentEstablishing an OperationalData System for SurfaceCurrents from SatelliteAltimeters and ScatterometersTotal Surface Current VelocityQuikScatScatterometerWind-DrivenCurrent

Coastal Wind Images from SAR

Alaska SAR DemonstrationHIGH RESOLUTION INFORMATIONFOR IMPROVED ICE EDGEFORECASTSICE INFORMATION ANDVESSEL POSTIONS FORFISHERIES MANAGEMENTSEA ICE EDGE AND SNOW CRAB FISHERY FLEET

Arabian Sea - December 2000TERRA-MODIS Chlorophyll a

Harmful Algal Bloom

Global Coverage of Ocean Winds & Detailed Structure of Hurricane Floyd

TOPEX/POSEIDON ALTIMETRYFOR EL NIÑO

NEW ELEMENTS: ARGO ANDGODAE

6,316BATHY & TESACreports collectedin real timeduringDecember, 2000.We have limited ability to observebeneath the surface of the ocean.

Argo will cover the global oceanswith 3,000 profiling floats.

GODAEGLOBAL OCEAN DATA ASSIMILATION EXPERIMENTObjective: practical demonstration of real-time, global ocean dataassimilation for operational oceanographyTo apply state-of-the-art ocean models & assimilation methods for:-- short-range open-ocean forecasts-- boundary conditions for coastal forecasts-- initial conditions for climate forecast modelsTo provide global ocean analyses and re-analyses to improve our:-- understanding of the oceans-- assessments of the predictability of ocean systems-- the design & effectiveness of the global ocean observing system

MERCATOR Bulletin for June 19,2002 : how is the ocean next week ?Sea Sea Surface SurfaceHeight HeightSea Sea Surface SurfaceTemperatureTemperatureSalinity Salinity at at 1000 1000 mdepth depthGODAE, Biarritz – 13 June, 2002

EL NIÑO AND OTHER LONGPERIOD OSCILLATIONS

THE EL NIÑO/SOUTHERN OSCILLATION

ZIMBABWE MAIZE YIELD AND EL NIÑO

EL NIÑO AND HEALTH RISKS: MALARIA

NORTH ATLANTIC OSCILLATION (NAO)

NORTH ATLANTIC OSCILLATION AFFECTSZOOPLANKTON (CALANUS)

THE PACIFIC DECADAL OSCILLATION1947-19761977-1997Courtesy of the National Geographic Magazine

Change has profoundconsequences for all naturalresources, stakeholders andmanagersGOA - Early ’70sSource: Francis and Hare 1994GOA Late ’70sCentral Alaska Sockeye catchesGOA 1980s-’90s

GOOS IN COASTAL SEAS ANDEEZs

Integrated, Ecosystem BasedAdaptive ManagementResource Management, Environmental Protection,Coastal Area Management, Coastal EngineeringRequires ability toØØRoutinely & Rapidlydetect changesProvide timelypredictions of changesWE DO NOT HAVE THISCAPABILITYTODAY

Coastal Phenomena of InterestDrivers of Change Ecosystem DynamicsnnnMarine Operations & Public SafetyØØØSea state, Currents, Sea iceSea level, SSTCoastal flooding & erosionPublic HealthØØSeafood contaminationAmbient levels of pathogensEcosystem Health & LMRsØØØØØØDeclines in living resourcesAquacultureLoss of habitat & biodiversityHABs, Invasive speciesMass mortalitiesChemical contamination

Global Coastal NetworkProvisional Common VariablesPHYSICALSea level, Temperature, Salinity, Surface currents,Surface wave spectra, Bathymetry, Shoreline positionCHEMICALSediment grain size/organic content,Dissolved inorganic N-P-Si, Dissolved O 2BIOLOGICALChlorophyll a, Attenuation of solar radiation,Benthic biomass, Fecal indicators

Observing Subsystem:Key elements of infrastructure• In situ sensing• Coastal Observing Network for the Near Shore• GLOSS• Fixed platforms, moorings, drifters, AUVs• SOOP, VOOS (e.g., Instrumented Ferries)• Remote sensing• Satellites & aircraft• Land-based – HF Radar

New Jersey Shelf Observing SystemRemoteSensingHFRadarGliders4-D Visualization300km x 300kmREMOTE SENSING,RADAR, GLIDERS

GOOS NATIONAL PROGRAMSAND REGIONAL ALLIANCES

Global Distribution of National GOOS Committeesor Contact PointsRegional GOOS BodiesNational GOOS Committees/Contact Pointshttp://ioc.unesco.org/goos

GOOS REGIONSEuroGOOSBS-GOOSMedGOOSGOOS-AFRICAIO-GOOSNEAR- IOCARIBE-GOOS GOOSSEA-GOOSPI-GOOSGRASPEuAF

What nextn Develop new Regional efforts: S.E. Pacific GOOSn Implement Coastal GOOS inc. water quality monitoring& living resources.n Build remote sensing capacityn Build numerical modeling capacity for data processingand analysisn Encourage pooling of resources in Regional Processingcentersn Improving data exchange and managementn Find out what your users want

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