Sustained Data for a Changing Ocean - Ocean Observatories Initiative
Lead Organizations
- Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
- Oregon State University
- University of Washington
Project Description
Commissioned in 2016, the Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) is funded by the US National Science Foundation to collect ocean data for 25 years or more. This longevity makes it possible to measure and observe short-lived episodic events and longer-term changes in the ocean.
The OOI consists of five instrumented arrays that continually measure more than 200 different parameters. The arrays gather physical, chemical, geological, and biological data from the air-sea interface to the seafloor. These data are freely available to anyone with an Internet connection. The arrays also function as test beds for new sensor technology to help advance the state of the art in ocean observation.
The OOI provides data from more than 800 instruments of 30 different types that measure more than 200 parameters. This data collection is unique in that it provides full water column measurements that span coastal to blue water, from the surface to the bottom of the ocean, to the air-sea interface. All of these data are available online in near real-time to anyone with an Internet connection. Researchers around the globe are using OOI data to advance understanding of the changing ocean.
Because of its potential to contribute to understanding of the changing ocean, the OOI was designated as an endorsed action of the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development in 2022.
Three OOI arrays are located in the northeast Pacific – Global Station Papa, Coastal Endurance, and the Regional Cabled Array.
The Global Station Papa Array is located in the Gulf of Alaska next to the NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL) Surface Buoy. The region is extremely vulnerable to ocean acidification, has a productive fishery, and low eddy variability. It is impacted by the Pacific Decadal Oscillation and adds to a broader suite of OOI and other observatory sites in the Northeast Pacific.
Located in the Northeast Pacific Ocean off the coasts of Oregon and Washington, the Coastal Endurance Array is part of a regional observatory network that includes OOI, Station Papa, and Ocean Networks Canada. Measurements taken by this network collectively capture variability of ocean properties across a broad range of temporal and spatial scales. The array is located in a region with coastal upwelling. These regions comprise less than 5 percent of the ocean’s surface area, yet account for a quarter of the global fish catch. Collected data allow examination of ocean health issues, including hypoxia, ocean acidification, and effects on ocean life.
The first U.S. ocean observatory to span a tectonic plate, the Regional Cabled Array (RCA) provides a constant stream of real time data from the seafloor and through the water column across the Juan de Fuca plate. A network of 900 kilometers of electro-optical cables supplies unprecedented power (10 kilovolts, 8 kilowatt), bandwidth (10 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE), and two-way communication to scientific sensors on the seafloor and throughout the water column.
The Regional Cable Array powers three arrays conducting different scientific investigations: The Cabled Continental Margin Array, the Cabled Axial Seamount Array, and the Cabled Endurance Array.