UH mounts ocean-forecasting project
Islanders wanting to know what is happening in the ocean -- from sewage leaks to sailing and shipping conditions -- will be able to find that information on the Internet within a few years.
Sea-observation system has 4-prong start
Four "catalyst projects" targeted by the University of Hawaii School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology in developing an ocean observing and forecasting system include:
"Coastal Sea-State and Forecast" -- Providing a "now-cast" and "forecast" of ocean conditions to support shipping and tourism industries.
"Coastal Resiliency" -- Building forecasting capabilities for natural marine hazards such as hurricanes and tsunamis, coastal erosion, high waves, sea-level rise and flooding.
"Marine Ecosystem Stewardship" -- Making submarine, remotely sensed and other observations of Hawaii's marine life to help establish management practices to preserve the resources and traditional access.
"Automated Water-Quality Sensing" -- Developing an automated system with improved sensors to monitor coastal water quality in real time for early warnings of contamination or other problems and faster response for mitigation efforts.
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An ocean observing and forecasting system similar to a weather forecasting service is the goal of a three-year, $7.2 million federal grant to the University of Hawaii's School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology.
Undersea observatories, high-frequency radios, upgraded fish aggregation buoys, oceanographic buoys, gliders, autonomous underwater vehicles and optical remote-sensing technology will be used to gather data, said Brian Taylor, the school's dean.
"It's not just about getting data," he stressed. "It's meant to be hands-on and people can get it -- not just what science types want, but products that are practical and relate to school kids and Joe and Jane Public, translated in terms they understand."
He said information and warnings on currents, temperatures, waves, physical conditions of the ocean and events such as oil spills and increased nutrients from runoff will be posted on the Internet similar to the hawaiibeachsafety.org site developed by SOEST geologist Charles "Chip" Fletcher and the Hawaii Lifeguard Association.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Integrated Ocean Observing Program has awarded 26 competitive grants totaling $17.2 million to begin developing a national integrated coastal and ocean observing program.
SOEST will receive $1.7 million for the first year starting Oct. 1. The program has been in planning for two years and will involve all school units, Taylor said.
Eric De Carlo, geochemist and oceanographic researcher working with colleagues at the Kilo Nalu Reef Observatory, said the ocean observing program will be a great boost for the university and Hawaii.
He said "a backbone of ocean observing" already is set up but is not integrated yet. "Now, with the new coastal services center, we will be able to really link our infrastructure, from open ocean to the coastal ocean."
Efforts will focus initially on Oahu's South Shore because of the developments, beaches and tourists, Taylor said. "But eventually, we would like to instrument all islands so, for example, we would know in great detail the currents and waves for all the passages and all ship routes between the islands."
The state's fish aggregation buoys will be upgraded to transmit by satellite, and more oceanographic buoys will be added to the system, he said. Gliders, scanning lidar (light detection and ranging) systems, REMUS (an autonomous underwater vehicle) and additional sensors will be used to collect coastal zone data.
High-frequency radios that can send and receive signals and actually determine the water's current action and wave height will be installed from Barbers Point to Koko Head, he said.
All information from land lines to satellites will go to "data central" at the school on the Manoa campus for data archiving, distribution and public consumption on the Internet, Taylor said.
De Carlo said 16 principal investigators will lead efforts as part of a larger group "for truly collaborative work that will benefit the state directly."
He and his colleagues have been studying the exchange of carbon dioxide between the ocean and the atmosphere in coastal zones. NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory will help them build two more buoys to deploy off the South Shore for carbon dioxide measurements and other research, he said.
The buoys will have early-warning sensors to alert state officials to certain water events, such as the 48 million-gallon sewage spill in Ala Wai Canal last year, he said.
"The hope is we can help the agencies and the public be able to make intelligent decisions about what to do, be it for regulatory or recreational purposes," De Carlo said.
