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Introduction
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Schematic of Martha’s Vineyard
Coastal Observatory (Drawing by: Jayne Doucette, WHOI). Click
to enlarge  |
The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution has built the Martha's Vineyard
Coastal Observatory (MVCO) near South Beach in Edgartown, Massachusetts.
The project was initiated by scientists in the Coastal and Ocean Fluid
Dynamics Laboratory (COFDL) at WHOI, who will use the observatory
to study coastal atmospheric and oceanic processes. Specifically,
the observatory is expected to:
- Provide a local climatology for intensive, short duration field
campaigns.
- Further facilitate regional studies of coastal processes by
providing infrastructure that supports easy access to electrical
power and data.
- Provide a reliable system of rugged sensors that allow opportunistic
sampling of extreme events.
- Provide continuous long term (25-30 years) observations for
climate studies.
- Provide a flexible system capable of supporting a wide range
of instrumentation and platforms, such as AUV docking stations.
- Provide a means for public outreach and educational programs.
- Contribute to a larger network of observatories and platforms
for real-time observations that can help verify and improve ocean
and atmospheric models.
The MVCO includes a small shore lab located between the hangars
at Katama Air Park, a 10-m meteorological mast near the South Beach
Donnelly House, a subsurface node mounted in 12-m water depth approximately
1.5 km south of Edgartown Great Pond, and an air-sea interaction
tower (ASIT) equipped with a top-side node to allow access to air-side
or underwater instrumentation at the 15-m isobath. The meteorological
and subsea instrumentation are connected directly to the shore lab
via a buried electro-optic power cable. The core set of instruments
at the meteorological mast measure wind speed and direction, temperature,
humidity, precipitation, CO2, solar and IR radiation, momentum,
heat, and moisture fluxes. The core oceanographic sensors at the
12-m offshore node measure current profiles, waves, temperature,
salinity, and near-bottom wave-orbital and low frequency currents.
In addition to the core set of instruments, the offshore nodes and
the meteorological mast act as “extension cords” into
the coastal environment, allowing connection of a wide range of
instruments for prolonged deployments.
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Description
