The Met Office has funded another meteorological /oceanographic data buoy from Hydrosphere that has been installed as part of the Western Channel Observatory. The buoy was successfully deployed in June at station E1 and will be operated and maintained by Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML). (24th June 2013)
The buoy uses the DB 8000 platform – a 3m diameter hull constructed from multiple-section polyethylene floats that are bolted around a central steel structure, with through-hull access for underwater instrumentation and cabling. The Western Channel Observatory buoy is configured with a large diameter tower, which allows more equipment to be installed and enables technicians to access underwater instrumentation from inside the tower. Underwater instrumentation packages are contained within an instrument cage, which is lowered down from the tower to a secure position within the underwater part of the steel central structure. The E1 buoy has similar meteorological sensors to the previous Met Office Data buoys supplied by Hydrosphere, as well as an oceanographic sensor suite that will measure sea temperature, salinity, depth, dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll ‘A’, turbidity, dissolved organic matter, and nitrates. As with the standard DB 8000 ODAS buoys, data is transmitted ashore using an Iridium satellite communication system.
Regular updates on the E1 Buoy can be found on the Western Channel Observatory Blog.
For more information on the range of data buoy platforms supplied by Hydrosphere take a look at the Data Buoy Platform product page or view Hydrosphere’s data buoy applications.
