Your query was:

"OS11A-04"

HR: 11:15h
AN: OS11A-04 INVITED
TI: Using Ocean Observatories to Study Continental Shelves: Lessons Learned in The Cool Room
AU: * Schofield, O M
EM: oscar@imcs.rutgers.edu
AF: Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ 08901 United States
AB: The biology and chemistry of the continental shelves is poorly studied using traditional techniques. Ocean observatories may help by providing guidance on when or where scientists should sample for a given process. Developing such a capability requires a mutliplatform sampling approach combined with data assimilative models. Key enabling technologies opening the door to such possibiltites include: (1) long-duration moorings or cabled observatories for subsurface time series, (2) high-frequency RADARs providing real-time surface current maps over shelfs, (3) the growing constellation of satellites, and (4) an emerging class of long-duration remotely-controlled Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs). This observationally rich environment changes the relationship between models and observation. In the well-sampled ocean, forecast errors are dominated by uncertainties in the model formulations or boundary conditions, and ensemble forecasts can be compared to observations to improve our understanding of errors associated with model assumptions. The evolving capabilities of ocean observatories are transforming how scientists conduct experiments in the field and I will review the promise, pitfalls, and potential of these continental shelf observatories.
DE: 4800 OCEANOGRAPHY: BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL
SC: OS
MN: 2004 Ocean Sciences Meeting