Updated: October 20, 2014
2014 Planned Field Operations
HFR
In 2014, we plan to have the High Frequency Radar (HFR) sites in Point Lay and Wainwright
operational in June, and to have the sites at Point Barrow and Cape Simpson operational in July.
The Point Barrow site will use the remote power module (RPM) that was was originally fabricated in 2010
with funding from the Center for Island, Maritime, and Extreme Environment Security
(
CIMES). The Cape Simpson site, east of Point Barrow, will be
powered by an RPM that was funded by the State of Alaska Coastal Impact Assistance Program
(
CIAP).
All sites will be reporting hourly real-time surface current velocities approximately 100 miles offshore
until sea ice ceases data returns.
- Update: All 4 HFR sites are operational as of 8/4/2014 (Cape Simpson a bit later than that).
High-Resolution Shipboard Survey
In September, 2014, there was a cruise aboard the
Norseman II
to perform a high-resolution shipboard survey. During the cruise, our
Sea Sciences
Acrobat towed research platform measured profiles of temperature, salinity, pressure, chlorophyll, dissolved organic matter,
and particle concentrations. Additional vessel instrumentation includes a vessel mounted Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler
(ADCP) and a Thermosalinograph (TSG).
Drifters
- We deployed 30
Pacifc Gyre Microstar drifters during the cruise in
September.
- Our partner, the The North Slope Borough Department of Wildlife Management
(NSBW) has deployed 104
Pacifc Gyre Microstar drifters in 4 groups of ~23. These
were deployed ~15 km from shore in locations ranging from Point Hope to Kaktovik/Camden Bay in the Beaufort Sea.
View
2014 Data.
Gliders
We had planned to deploy one
Webb Slocum glider with a long-term lithium battery in July, 2014, but there was too much ice in the area. Instead, it will be deployed with the
other two gliders during the September cruise. Gliders will be piloted from UAF, and will perform
independent surveys of the shelf.
All gliders will record temperature, salinity, and optics data and they all will be recovered in September.
- 10/20/2014 update: 3 gliders were deployed and recovered during the September cruises.
- View the last Data Section.
Met-Ocean Buoys
The UAF meteorological buoy that is funded under this project will
be deployed again in 2014 by
Evans Hamilton RPS
in late July or early August offshore of Point Lay. Measured properties will include wind speed, wind direction, wind gust, air temperature, water temperature, relative humidity, barometric pressure, solar radiation, pitch, roll, and battery voltage.
There will also be several industry sponsored meteorological buoys deployed in the Chukchi Sea. All buoys will be recovered
when ships leave the area for the season in early to mid-October.
- 3 MetBuoys have been deployed and since recovered. The UAF buoy had technical difficulties did not collect data.
Current meter moorings
The current meter mooring nearest to Wainwright, BC2, will be recovered and re-deployed from the Norseman II in September.
These instruments store data internally, so the data will downloaded after the moorings are recovered.
- Update 10/20/2014: Current meters have been recovered successfully. 1 has been deployed