GoMOOS News
November 9th, 2009 - Two Problem-Solvers Join Forces to Better Understand the Gulf of Maine
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: 
Blaine Grimes
Gulf of Maine Research Institute
(207) 228-1655
bgrimes@gmri.org
Two Problem-Solvers Join Forces to Better Understand the Gulf of Maine
Merger of Two Nonprofits Enhances Capacity to Maintain Healthy and Vibrant Ocean Ecosystem
PORTLAND, Maine — Nov. 9, 2009 — The Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI) and the Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System (GoMOOS) announced today that they have merged to enhance their capacity to understand the Gulf of Maine and develop innovative solutions to the complex challenges of ocean stewardship and economic growth.
"We’re looking ahead at what’s needed to have a real impact in the face of climate change and to foster sustainable fishing practices that really work for our coastal communities," said Don Perkins, president, GMRI. "The merger between GMRI and GoMOOS represents a landmark opportunity to combine ecosystem science with information technology and data sharing to address seemingly intractable challenges. It also presents an opportunity for GMRI to support regional cooperation in ocean observing through the Northeastern Regional Association of Coastal Ocean Observing Systems (NERACOOS)."
As one of the region’s leading research institutions, GMRI advances sustainable uses of marine resources and nurtures science literacy through a fusion of science, education and community programs. GMRI’s lab on the waterfront in Portland houses an international team of scientists working to fill key information gaps about commercial fish species, critical and sensitive habitats, fishing practices and gear technology, and economic decision making.
GoMOOS currently provides access to real-time ocean weather data for mariners, resource managers, scientists, educators, emergency response teams and other groups. These services will continue following the merger. In addition, GoMOOS brings to GMRI the capacity to manage, synthesize and share ocean data for multiple uses. This will open the door to bring ocean data products to new audiences — from schools to coastal management bodies to fishing cooperatives — and lead to new funding opportunities.
GoMOOS was founded in 1999 as a pilot for the concept of a national integrated ocean observing system. The effort was enormously successful, producing a cutting-edge system for collecting environmental data through a network of buoys in the Gulf of Maine. The buoy system was developed and is now owned and operated by the University of Maine as part of a comprehensive network overseen by NERACOOS. GoMOOS is an active participant in NERACOOS, providing leadership in data integration and product development.
"Now that ocean observing has a life of its own, it makes sense to reapply and extend our staff expertise to translate data into usable products that maximize benefits for the Gulf of Maine community. Merging with GMRI will accomplish this goal," said Tom Shyka, acting chief executive officer, GoMOOS. "It’s a great opportunity to integrate two complementary organizations with missions to drive solutions for the Gulf of Maine. It’s important that the many mariners who have come to rely on GoMOOS know we’re still there for them, and this service is only the beginning of the many ways we can use ocean data."
The company will continue to operate under the name Gulf of Maine Research Institute, with five GoMOOS employees joining GMRI’s staff. They will continue to work at GMRI’s research facility on Portland’s waterfront, where GoMOOS has been located since 2005.
For more information, visit www.gmri.org or call (207) 772-2321.
# # #
October 2nd, 2009 - UMaine completes the fall turnaround of the Gulf of Maine buoys
On September 15th, the crew at U Maine began the fall turnaround; redeploying buoys A, B, E, I, F, N and M. Every six months the buoys are 'swapped out' with an identical buoy outfitted with refurbished instrumentation and hardware. The new buoy is dropped in the water, instruments are hooked up, and the buoy begins recording data immediately. The old buoy is recovered, and taken back to Orono where it is cleaned, serviced and the data is downloaded from instrument loggers to be cross-checked against the real-time data to ensure quality control. Once the new buoy is determined to be working well and reporting accurately, IT staff deactivate the feed from the old buoy, activate the feed from the new buoy, and data from the new buoy flows seamlessly to the website with no interruption to the user accessing the data.
On September 15th the UMaine crew left on the R/V Argo from Rockland to service buoys E, I and F. After successfully redeploying the first three buoys, the crew returned to Rockland to reload and continue on to N, A and B. On October 2nd, buoy M was redeployed, concluding the fall turnaround.
Redeploying buoys is hard work and relies on good planning, good communication and good weather. Many thanks to the hard working crew at the University of Maine for another successful turnaround. Their efforts ensure data will continue to be available for the Gulf of Maine through the winter months.
For more information on the UMaine Physical Oceanography Group:
http://gyre.umeoce.maine.edu/
September 15, 2009 - A new website for ocean data in the Northeast is launched - NERACOOS.org - developed by GoMOOS
The Northeast Regional Association for Coastal and Ocean Observing Systems (NERACOOS) is a newly formed organization established to network and expand the existing observing and prediction capacities of a multitude of institutions and agencies throughout New England and Maritime Canada. This summer, GoMOOS worked with the leadership of NERACOOS to designed a new website demonstrating the functionality and data resources in the Northeast region.
Products include:
- Real-time buoy map with 12-hour time series charts from observing stations throughout the Northeast
- Model output viewer
- Northeast Coastal Ocean Forecast System
- Coastal Flooding and Erosion Tool
The website also features detailed information on the ocean observing projects and initiatives underway in the region.
To learn more about NERACOOS and access the data, visit the new site! http://www.neracoos.org
May 8th, 2009 - Coastal Hazards Resilience Workshop - Proceedings are now available
In November, 2008, the Northeast Regional Ocean Council and the NOAA Coastal Services Center hosted a Workshop Towards Regional Coastal Hazards Resiliency.
This event was an opportunity for local, state, federal, and private interests from throughout the region to review New England's storm vulnerability, assess our current resilience capacity, and develop strategies to boost both individual state and the region's collective progress towards being "hazard ready" in the future.
Participants benefited from presentations from experts in the field, networking with colleagues from throughout New England, and the opportunity to guide future NROC partner efforts.
GoMOOS staff organized the workshop logistics, staffed the meeting and presented the Coastal Flooding and Erosion Forecast Tool that was developed with the National Weather Service.
To view details from the workshop and download proceedings and presentations, please visit the following link:
http://www.gomoos.org/news/hazardsworkshop.html
January 21, 2009 - GoMOOS IT Team selected to be a member of the OGC Interoperability Program Pool
The Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System (GoMOOS), Inc. has been selected to be a member of the OGC Interoperability Program Pool. The OGC IP Pool is a set of companies, universities, and independent consultants that have been pre-qualified to be part of future Open Geospatial Consortium Interoperability Program Team (IP Team) activities. The OGC Interoperability Program conducts its mission by tapping expertise from the IP Pool to form project teams that conduct IP Initiatives.
The OGC IP Pool web page: http://www.opengeospatial.org/projects/ippool
More information on GoMOOS' data sharing efforts: http://gomoos.org/sharingdata/
December 24, 2008 - National Weather Service - Visibility Study With GoMOOS Data
Jim Hayes of the National Weather Service, in Gray, Maine has developed a report of a recent visibility study. He used a sizeable dataset from GoMOOS (GoMOOS visibility data 2001-present), which is important information for marine forecasters when predicting fog. The GoMOOS visibility sensors are very unique, and there has been very little research along the east coast towards "operational" forecasts of arctic sea smoke, most likely because it is very rare until you reach Maine's latitude along the east coast.
NWS hopes to further build on the archive and climatology of arctic sea smoke events (and the related topic of freezing spray) by creating an archive of sea smoke pictures from Islanders and mariners who can help capure this information. The photographs and logs can be correlated with GoMOOS data (correlate visibility, SST, air temps) to further understand this weather phenonemon. NWS is also developing "Smart Tools" for their computers to generate gridded forecasts of sea smoke and freezing spray.
If you are interested in joining the communication network to help "capture" and document these events with photos and logs (to document past and future events), please join our Google Group (update link when group is created)!
Download the article (PDF): National Weather Service - Visibility Study
November 15, 2008 - Coastal storm-damage forecasts and NOAA partnership featured in Journal of Ocean Technology
In 2007, GoMOOS and the National Weather Service teamed up to prototype a web application that combines wave and water level forecasts to predict potential damage of certain types of coastal storms. This tool was initially developed for Saco, ME, and a Scituate, MA version was released in June 2008. This article, published in the Journal of Ocean Technology, provides an example of how how Web 2.0 technologies can streamline the transition from research to practical applications for coastal and emergency managers.
Download the article (PDF): Journal of Ocean Technology - Forecasting storm damage on the Maine coast
See the application in action: http://www.openioos.org/stormlist/coastalflooding.html
October 28, 2008 - GoMOOS CEO chairs international conference on Ocean Observing Systems
GoMOOS CEO, Philip Bogden, served as Conference Chair for the Ocean Innovation 2008 – “World Summit – Ocean Observing Systems” in October 2008. The conference was hosted by the Marine Institute of Memorial University in Newfoundland, Canada. It brought together a global community of interest in ocean observing systems to discuss and debate lessons learned and paths forward. As part of the conference, Philip Bogden published an editorial in the companion issue of the Journal of Ocean Technology. And GoMOOS COO, Tom Shyka, presented on some of the recent accomplishments at GoMOOS, including a coastal storm-damage prediction tool that we and our partners at the Southeastern Universities Research Association (SURA) are providing to the National Weather Service.
October 1, 2008 - Penobscot Bay data buoy continues operations; GoMOOS network at risk
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 10, 2008
Contact: Catherine Schmitt, 207.581.1434
Safety, climate information at risk with loss of Gulf of Maine observing network
Outcry leads to interim rescue for Penobscot Bay buoy
ORONO, ME – An observation buoy in Penobscot Bay used by fishermen, boaters, scientists and the U.S. Coast Guard will continue to collect oceanographic data for another year, thanks to recent funding secured from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) by Maine Sea Grant. The status of other buoys in the network remains in question. The Penobscot Bay buoy is part of the Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System (GoMOOS), one of many regional ocean observing networks around the country that are experiencing a funding shortfall. This September, GoMOOS staff announced that they only had enough money to deploy six of the 11 buoys in the observing system.
"When word got out that we were going to lose the Penobscot Bay buoy, we received many expressions of alarm and regret from the public, from the Coast Guard, and the National Weather Service in Gray. Half of the letters we received singled out the Penobscot Bay buoy as a particularly serious loss," said Dr. Neal Pettigrew, professor of oceanography at the University of Maine and the chief scientist of GoMOOS.
The buoys record real-time data on currents, temperature, salinity, wind and waves. According to Chief Warrant Officer Curtis Barthel of the U.S. Coast Guard in Rockland, "The buoy provides us with vital weather data that we need to make critical operational decisions. Most important, our Personnel Protective Gear requirements are all based on the water temperature and this buoy gives us the most relevant data for the area in which we operate. The limitations of our boats are dictated by the wind speed and wave height. We are underway almost daily and the wind and wave data from this buoy are crucial to us making the right decision on what boat to take for every mission."
Dr. Pettigrew contacted Maine Sea Grant director Paul Anderson, who was able to secure funding from NOAA to help keep the buoy operational for another year. Last week, University of Maine staff deployed the Penobscot Bay buoy. "The money from Sea Grant was a fraction of what we need to keep the buoy functional. Additional funds are needed to defray the ongoing expenses of operating the buoy and to prepare for the spring redeployment," cautioned Pettigrew.
The Penobscot Bay buoy has been collecting environmental data since 1996, a record that is especially relevant in light of current efforts to restore populations of sea-run fish. One way scientists will be able to document restoration success is by monitoring fish movement using systems such as GoMOOS. "In addition to tracking Atlantic salmon, we have detected striped bass and sturgeon using GoMOOS buoys. Some of our fish have been found even farther away with this technology," said John Kocik of NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service Maine Field Station in Orono.
Other researchers have used the buoys to track water quality changes in water entering the bay from the Penobscot River, and to detect long-term changes in climate and weather. "Long records such as the one we have with this buoy are difficult to come by, and they become more valuable with each year of operation," explained Pettigrew. Tom Shyka of GoMOOS said the loss of these buoys will be an immediate threat to safety at sea, climate change research, fisheries management, and much more. "We are looking for all opportunities to keep as many buoys in the water as possible," said
Shyka.
###
Maine Sea Grant, based at the University of Maine and sponsored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the State of Maine, supports marine and coastal scientific research and education. In partnership with University of Maine Cooperative Extension, members of our Marine Extension Team work in coastal communities from Wells to Eastport, focusing on Maine's coastal natural resources and the people who depend on them. Learn more at www.seagrant.umaine.edu
October 1, 2008 - New Wave Buoy on Jeffrey’s Ledge 
GoMOOS.org is pleased to announce the availability of new hourly wave height information from the east side of Jeffrey’s Ledge near Wilkinson Basin. As part of researchefforts to improve wind and wave forecasts at the UNH/NOAA Joint Center for Ocean Observing Technology, the University of New Hampshire is providing this data via a specialized buoy that measures wave height, period, and direction.
The mooring, which will be deployed for at least three years, is located at 42.801 N,70.168W in 75 m of water just north of the Stellwagen Bank Marine Sanctuary and within the Western Gulf of Maine closure area. You can view the buoy data here: http://www.gomoos.org/data/recent.html
This buoy is part of the Coastal Data Information Program (CDIP) network along with buoys on the west coast, Florida, Virginia and North Carolina. For further information contact Dr. Douglas Vandemark at the Univ. of New Hampshire (603 862-0195 or doug.vandemark@unh.edu.
September 22, 2008 - GoMOOS Buoy Status Update
Dear Friends of GoMOOS,
Since we announced in late August that funding for several GoMOOS buoys is insufficient to keep them in the water this fall, we have received incredible feedback on the importance of these assets to lives and livelihoods. We are working hard to communicate with decision-makers and potential funders the value of the buoys and the information they provide with the hope of securing necessary funds to keep this critical data flowing.
We're pleased that this issue continues to get broad media coverage. Please watch for news coverage this week:
> On September 22nd at 6pm on the Green Outdoors segment of WCSH New Center 6, out of Portland Maine, Bill Green will featured a segment on the GoMOOS cutbacks.
> On September 24th at 6:00 and 11:00 on WGME News 13, Doug Rafferty hosted a special section on the GoMOOS buoy funding woes.
Thank you all for your support. We will continue to provide updates as we work to secure necessary funding for the GoMOOS buoy array.
Sincerely,
The Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System
August 26, 2008 - Important Notice About GoMOOS Buoys
Buoy Removal Notice
Due to federal funding shortfalls, several of the GoMOOS buoys (C, D, F, J and L). will likely be removed during the Fall 2008 deployment. GoMOOS is working to find a solution that will enable us to keep the buoys in the water. Your support is needed.
Please click here to send GoMOOS your feedback directly, or call us at 207-228-1660.
Why is this happening?
Over the past several years, federal funding has decreased for regional ocean observing systems like GoMOOS. The impact of reduced funding has been delayed until now because of generous non-federal contributions from States, Universities and Industry in the region. However, we have reached a critical point where the only option is to remove buoys from the water.
What is being done to prevent the buoys from coming out of the water?
GoMOOS has been working with regional partners, including the University of Maine, to garner support for the entire system during times of decreased federal funding. Five of the 11 buoys are slated to be removed this fall. Recognizing that the loss of these buoys will be an immediate threat to safety at sea, climate change research, fisheries management, and much more, we continue to reach out to secure support.
Which buoys are threatened?
Buoys D, C, F, J, and L are presently threatened for removal. NOAA funding will continue for five GoMOOS buoys: Buoys B, E, I, M and N. These funds are administered through a new organization called NERACOOS (Northeastern Regional Association of Coastal Ocean Observing Systems). In addition, Buoy A will be maintained with support from the Northeast Gateway Deepwater Port liquefied natural gas project off Massachusetts.
What can I do to help?
We need to hear from you! Please let us know how you, your business or your organization will be impacted by the removal of these buoys. Click here to send us an email or call GoMOOS at 207-228-1660. Monetary contributions could make it possible to keep the buoys from coming out of the water.
April 29, 2008 - Workshop announcement: "Integrating Coastal and Ocean Observations in the Gulf of Maine"
Gulf of Maine Ocean Data Partnership Web Services Workshop
Title: Integrating Coastal and Ocean Observations in the Gulf of Maine
When: Wednesday May 21, 2008 9:00am – 4:00pm
Where: Gulf of Maine Research Institute, 350 Commercial Street, Portland ME
Why: Web services provide a key to harnessing ocean observations for maximum societal benefit. This basic premise underlies various federal initiatives, and the Gulf of Maine region stands poised to be at the forefront of the “service-oriented” approach for marine applications (aka Interoperability). Through this workshop, individuals and organizations interested in making their data available or accessing others’ data will become familiar with the multiple opportunities that exist in the Environmental Web 2.0.
Overview
The technology of web services and associated consensus standards advanced by the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC; www.opengeospatial.org) offer incredible opportunities to harmonize the various approaches in the environmental realm. This seminar will present an overview of national initiatives augmented by (or the potential to be augmented by) OGC standards, including the EPA National Environmental Information Exchange Network (NEIEN; www.exchangenetwork.net), the OCG Ocean Science Interoperability Experiment (OOSTethys; www.oostethys.org), and the Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS; www.iobis.org). In addition, participants will learn about regional efforts of the Gulf of Maine Ocean Data Partnership, including the model interoperability experiment.
The intent of this workshop is to inform partners about existing projects and technologies, and to inform future training needed to overcome the complexities of web services. Presentations and panel discussions on a variety of regional, national, and international initiatives will be followed by hands-on opportunities to practice implementation mechanisms. Additionally, participants should expect to discuss challenges and opportunities from their own experiences working with data and model access and interoperability.
Outcomes
This workshop will be a kick off to a series of webinars, which will truly enable interoperability by providing more in-depth instruction on implementation. Workshop discussion and participant feedback will determine future webinar content. These subsequent trainings will be available live on line, as well as recorded for future reference.
Who should attend?
This workshop will be of interest to any ODP Partner, and will provide content of interest to managerial, programmatic, and technical staff. Those who work most with the management of data sets will likely find the greatest benefit in this seminar.
For more information, contact Jen Levin at 207-228-1668 or jlevin@gomoos.org.
Please RSVP if you plan to attend.
Overnight Accommodations: A block of rooms has been reserved at the Holiday Inn - Portland West under the group name "GoMOOS" for the nights of May 20 and 21. Please call 207-774-5601 and make your reservation under this block for a special rate of $99.99. The web site for this hotel is http://www.portlandholidayinn.com.
April 29, 2008 - Conference announcement:
OCEAN INNOVATION 2008 WORLD SUMMIT - OCEAN OBSERVING SYSTEMS
WORKSHOP OUTLINE
Title: "From Sensors to Applications: Advancing the Interoperability of Ocean Sensors"
Date: Wednesday October 22, 2008
Venue: Marine Institute, Memorial University
Overview:
The "system of systems" concept has become widely recognized as the system design for observing the entire planet, including the oceans. To go from concept to reality, the operative term is interoperability. This workshop will explore what many now believe to be the linchpin in the emerging ocean observing systems market - interoperable ocean sensors. Early work on ocean observing systems has largely focused on the interoperability of data and information systems (i.e., the legacy data silos) to support a variety of applications, such as sea state forecasting or inundation modeling. More recent initiatives, such as OGC's Sensor Web Enablement, are focusing attention on the interoperability of sensors, thereby enabling observing systems to move closer to the vision of "network as platform". This workshop will begin with case studies to illustrate how standards are developed and why standards are important to interoperability. Live demonstrations will be used to show how standards are already being implemented in the real world of ocean observing systems. Participants will then be engaged in a detailed discussion of the requirements for future sensor standards in the context of the vision of global interoperability. The need for "smart? sensors and the role of middleware will be considered in detail. The workshop will conclude with a discussion of a new international initiative to benchmark and implement ocean sensor standards.
Results:
Participants will take away from the workshop:
- A better understanding of OOS standards, best practices and interoperability.
- Best Practices Guide (OGC ocean science interoperability experiment - OCEANS IE)
- Sample use case on how to implement standards (OOSTethys)
- Reference implementations of open standards in oceans science, including OGC Web
- Services standards, OGC Sensor Web Enablement standards, IEEE 1451 "smart sensor"
standards, and OASIS Standards. - A draft outline of an international experiment to advance the interoperability of OOS
sensors in support of a global application (e.g. inundation modeling).
This workshop will be of interest to sensor manufacturers, standards bodies, OOS program
managers, ocean scientists and others with an interest in how standards are developed and
implemented to improve interoperability within and between cooperating organizations in
the ocean observation community of interest.
This workshop is being co-sponsored by
The Open Geospatial Consortium and the Alliance for Coastal Technologies.
For more information and to register: http://www.oceaninnovation.ca/Default.asp
April 10, 2008 - An extraordinary event is occurring right now in Massachusetts Bay and in Cape Cod Bay. Whale researchers estimate that 22% (79/350) of the highly endangered North Atlantic right whale population is currently feeding on dense patches of copepods. All ten of Cornell’s real-time whale detection buoys in the Boston shipping lane, which bisects the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, have been activated by 219 right whale calls in the last 24 hours. Mariners are advised to travel with extreme caution in these areas.
For more information on the strong connection between right whales and copepods, visit the GoMOOS web site at http://www.gomoos.org/environmentalprediction, which presents Dr. Andrew Pershing’s research on forecasting right whale births based on GoMOOS buoy data and Calanus projections. In partnership with Dr. Pershing and the acoustic buoy team at Cornell and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, GoMOOS plans to develop a real-time, web-based tool that will predict the timing and locations of right whales from Cape Cod to the Bay of Fundy.
For more information on the Cornell Acoustic bouys and whale sightings, visit these websites:
http://www.listenforwhales.org - Cornell University's Right Whale Listening Network. New smart buoys listen for whale calls all day, every day. Frequent alerts let ship captains know where and when to slow down--and save a whale.
http://rwhalesightings.nefsc.noaa.gov - Northeast US Right Whale Sightings Program. The System provides real-time right whale sighting information to the commercial shipping industry and other marine traffic from aerial and shipboard surveys conducted by several agencies and organizations and from verified opportunistic sightings.
April 8, 2008 - Announcing the 2008 Ocean Observing Educators Institute 
July 7 - July 11, 2008
Linking the Ocean to the Classroom
Understanding Seasonal Change in the
Ocean Using Ocean Observing Data
University of New Hampshire
Durham, NH 03824
The Coastal Observing Center and the Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System (GoMOOS)
have co-sponsored teacher workshops held at UNH since 2004. This Educator Institute will
focus on understanding how ocean observing data can explain seasonal changes in the ocean.
Teachers will collect data at sea, learn how to interpret various types of ocean observing data,
and practice using cutting edge materials that
connect the ocean to the larger earth/sun
system. Teachers will be asked to translate this
new knowledge to learners through creating
effective lessons for their classrooms. This
workshop aims to provide a deeper
understanding on how the Gulf of Maine works,
how it changes and how we can monitor these
changes through studying ocean observing data.
Workshop Sponsors:
- The University of New Hampshire Coastal Observing Center
- The Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System (GoMOOS)
- Center for Ocean Science Education
Excellence – Ocean Systems (COSEE-
OS)
For more information and to register for workshop: http://www.cooa.unh.edu/education/2008_Institute/workshop2008.jsp
April 2, 2008 - The President of the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) has recognized the work of the ocean sciences community in helping to develop and advance standards for data integration. GoMOOS and the work with the OOSTethys project were specifically mentioned.
In his message http://www.opengeospatial.org/pressroom/newsletters/200803, OGC President Mark Reichardt acknowledged a few of the ocean and coastal zone management issues that require coordinated solutions among researchers, government agencies, NGOs, businesses and citizens. “Given the magnitude and complexity of the issues, ocean research programs have much to gain by improving their ability to share ocean data, which almost always has spatial context,” he said.
Specifically, Reichardt mentioned the Ocean Science OGC Interoperability Experiment http://www.opengeospatial.org/projects/initiatives/oceansie, an effort to study implementations of OGC Web Service (OWS) standards being used by the ocean-observing community. For more information on that effort, please visit http://www.oostethys.org
The OGC is also supporting Ocean Innovation 2008 - "World Summit - Ocean Observing Systems http://www.oceaninnovation.ca," October 19-22, 2008, St. Johns, Canada. This conference will bring together a global community of interest in ocean observing systems to discuss and debate lessons learned and paths forward.
September 6 , 2007 - Welcome to the new and improved GoMOOS.org! The new GoMOOS website features many behind the scenes upgrades and several visible enhancements including:
- New home page designed to better highlight news, site features, and user stories
- New site navigation designed to make it easier to find relevant information
- Two new observing stations are available - the UNH Great Bay Buoy and the WHOI Martha's Vineyard Coastal Observatory
- A new Wind and Wave Forecast
- Receive current observations via SMS text-messages from mobile phones with the new "Text-a-buoy" feature
- New site-wide search feature and email list sign-up on every page
We hope you enjoy the new website. Please let us know what you think!
We are pleased to introduce a new version of the GoMOOS web site.
The "beta test" site can be viewed at http://beta.gomoos.org.
The new site features many behind the scenes upgrades and several visible enhancements including:
- New home page designed to better highlight new site features, the depth of products available on the site, and what our users think of GoMOOS
- New site navigation designed to make locating relevant products on the site more intuitive
- Two new observing stations are available - the UNH Great Bay Buoy and the WHOI Martha's Vineyard Coastal Observatory (http://beta.gomoos.org/data/recent.html)
- A new wind and wave forecast (http://beta.gomoos.org/waveforecasts/windwaveforecast.html)
- A new "Text-a-buoy" product allowing you to receive current observations via SMS text-messages from mobile phones (http://beta.gomoos.org/howto/textabuoy.html)
- A new site-wide search feature and email list sign-up are available on every page
This site is available for public viewing and feedback through a link from the existing GoMOOS home page and hourly buoy page to this new "beta test" web site. After we allow our users a period of time to give us their feedback and for us to adjust the site appropriately based on that feedback, we will replace the existing GoMOOS site with this new one.
This site will be in active development during the "beta test" period, so you may occasionally find things that are broken, or don't look exactly as they will when we finally launch the site in its fully polished form.
As users of the website, we invite your feedback! Thanks for your continued support of GoMOOS!
Putting the "Integrated" in IOOS
Each ocean observing system is like its own country with a unique culture, dialect, or language.
A long-standing challenge throughout the ocean observing community has been to enable these
various systems or platforms to "talk" with each other to exchange and compare information. This
challenge often prevents ocean observing systems from collaboratively contributing to a more
holistic picture of the ocean.
To help bridge this communications gap, GoMOOS has taken a lead in developing standards-based
open-source software and cyberinfrastructure. Through its partnership with the Southeastern
Universities Research Association (SURA), GoMOOS helped develop OpenIOOS.org, an interoperability
demonstration for the interchange of oceanographic data. OpenIOOS.org uses standards developed
by the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) to enable data from over one hundred ocean observing
platforms to be aggregated, stored, and displayed. The OGC standards focus on the most effective
ways to share geospatial information, from a wind sensor in the middle of Oklahoma to a temperature
gauge in the Gulf of Mexico.
Another interoperability project that was going on in parallel with the development of OpenIOOS.org
is the Marine Metadata Interoperability Project (MMI). MMI creates language translation and
standards for ocean observations. While one system might refer to "salinity," another could
reference the same thing as "sea water salinity." It’s clear to people that they mean the same
thing, but programs and models require a common language. MMI develops technologies and conventions
to enable this language translation.
During the summer of 2006, SURA and MMI joined forces to bring together the OGC standards-based
interoperability of OpenIOOS with the language translation capabilities of MMI. This collaboration
is called OOSTethys (http://www.oostethys.org).
One of the first results from OOSTethys was a set of cookbooks that provide an easy way to translate
ocean observing data from different formats into the common XML formats prescribed by the OGC Sensor
Web Enablement standards. The cookbooks then make that XML data available over the web. According
to Eric Bridger, developer of the first OOSTethys cookbook and senior programmer at GoMOOS, "IT
personnel at various institutions can use the language they are accustomed to and then rely on the
cookbooks to translate." Even in the pilot phase, this new translation software is enabling sharing
of information from multiple systems in a way that was never before possible.
"I like the concept of the standards-driven implementation that the OGC goes through," said Janet
Fredericks, project manager at the Martha’s Vineyard Coastal Observatory, which is owned and operated
by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. "OOSTethys allows us to easily
provide our oceanographic data in a standards-based format."
"It's the way of the future," said Ru Morrison, research assistant professor in the University of
New Hampshire Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans and Space, which is another OOSTethys data
provider. "Interoperability is at the heart of making sure the whole IOOS (Integrated Ocean Observing
System) works."
According to William Armstrong, information technologist at the University of New Hampshire, the
cookbook software is working very well. "As part of a state university, it’s our job to share the
wealth a little bit. It’s important to collaborate with other universities and make the most out
of the research we’re doing."
Thanks to GoMOOS and its work with SURA, MMI, OGC, and OOSTethys, researchers are beginning to
realize how possible this kind of collaboration is.
For more information, please visit these links:
http://www.oostethys.org
http://www.openioos.org
http://www.openioos.org/testbed/sos/gm_sos.html - Sample implementation of OOSTethys integrated data
http://www.cooa.unh.edu - UNH Coastal Ocean Observing Center
http://www.whoi.edu/mvco - Martha's Vineyard Coastal Observatory (WHOI)
http://www.marinemetadata.org - Marine Metadata Interoperability Experiment - MMI
Decoding OOSTethys
In Greek mythology, Tethys, was a marine goddess. Considered to be the personification of the ocean, she birthed the springs, lakes, and rivers of the world. In deference to this deity, MMI named one of its data interoperability efforts after her. When MMI and OpenIOOS partnered, they combined OOS (Ocean Observing System) with Tethys to create OOSTethys.
GoMOOS 2007 User Survey Results
While a main focus for GoMOOS is maintaining the buoy array, GoMOOS also devotes a lot of effort to providing accurate and timely information to our user base. Researchers, mariners, land planners, aquaculture businesses, surfers, and many more rely on the information the buoys offer, as well as GoMOOS’ ability to provide it to them.
In fact, during the first quarter of 2007, the GoMOOS web site welcomed 20,000 different individuals who visited the site approximately 70,000 times total. While the majority of users are from the Northeast, site visitors came from all 50 U.S. states, all 10 Canadian provinces, and 109 different countries during that time.
Thanks to all of our users who participated in the February 2007 GoMOOS on-line user survey! The results, summarized briefly below, enable the organization to get an even better idea of where our users are coming from and how GoMOOS information is being used.
The largest consumer group of GoMOOS on-line services is mariners, including commercial fishermen, recreational boaters, and ship operators. In the most recent survey, 62% of respondents fit in that category. Predominantly, these users are checking GoMOOS buoy data for sea conditions to determine whether it’s safe to sail. As one user put it, “GoMOOS is a valuable resource for weather tracking and determining whether a vessel should venture out beyond a certain point.”
The next largest user group is surfers, who are also using the site for surface conditions. “I am an avid surfer and use the site often to determine what the surf will be like as well as when to go and where,” said one respondent.
In addition to surface conditions, commercial fishermen are interested in what’s going on under the water. Sixty-eight percent of commercial fishermen respondents look for information on currents, water temperature, dissolved oxygen, and so on, which is often helpful in gauging fish behavior.
Researchers are another important user group. Many use the archived data in their studies to help garner a better understanding of the ocean and its processes. Additionally, as they traverse the ocean to conduct their research, they also refer to the site for conditions information.
Many survey respondents complimented the site’s speed and ease of use. One fisherman summed it up with his comment, “The computer is not my best friend most of the time, but this web site is pretty easy and very useful to me and my business.”
A similar user survey was conducted in 2005. A comparison of the two surveys is below:
| Question Summary | 2007 Survey (February) | 2005 Survey (May) |
| Number of Responses | 241 | 475 |
| In what capacity do you use the GoMOOS site? | Fishermen 40% |
Recreational Boaters 32% |
| How often do you visit the GoMOOS site? (said daily) | 83.3% | 28.6% |
| What information are you seeking at this site today? (weather information) | 79.41% | 73.49% |
| What information are you seeking at this site today? (surface water information) | 76.47% | 75.00% |
| How much do you depend on information? (said need it fairly often or alot) | 94.52% | 83.66% |
| How valuable is this information to you? (rated data as valuable or very valuable) | 93.7% | 90.08% |
| If this information were NOT available to you through GoMOOS, would you regard this as: (rated a serious loss or inconvenience) | 85.23% | 80.97% |
| In what state or province do you live? | Maine – 63.98% |
Maine – 54.37% |
New Seacoast Science Center hands-on program, "Seasons of the Sea", uses GoMOOS data
GoMOOS is pleased to be a contributor to an exciting new hands-on program, Seasons of the Sea. The exhibit, created through collaboration between University of New Hampshire marine scientists and Seacoast Science Center staff, utilizes GoMOOS buoy and satellite data.
Two GoMOOS buoys, one in the coastal zone and another offshore in deeper waters, send real-time data to a six-foot display where viewers can compare and update information using dials on the display.
Programs like this enable greater public understanding of the inner workings of the Gulf of Maine, including how scientists utilize ocean observing data to predict things such as changes in climate and ocean ecology.
GoMOOS Announces - Regional Habitat Monitoring Data System (January 12, 2007)
The Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System (GoMOOS) announces a new web-based Regional Habitat Monitoring Data System. In partnership with the Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment, the University of New Hampshire, the Massachusetts office of Coastal Zone Management, US Geological Survey, and Maine Department of Marine Resources, GoMOOS has developed a web-based system that will enable sharing, integration, and use of coastal habitat monitoring data.
This online system (available for viewing at http://www.gomoos.org/gomc/map) creates a user-friendly, standardized data entry mechanism that allows for the integration of coastal monitoring datasets from around the Gulf of Maine. The site enables monitoring programs to safely store their data, while also facilitating simultaneous use of information from multiple sources.
Coastal managers can access the information to paint a clearer picture of habitat conditions and trends by creating reports, and visually displaying the data on maps and graphs. For example, managers can see region-scale analyses of “natural” conditions of vegetation, as well as how vegetation changes over time following restoration activities. By integrating data from around the Gulf of Maine, this new tool makes possible more effective and timely coastal habitat management.
This effort is a proof of concept that will serve multiple partners around the Gulf of Maine and enhance our understanding of valued coastal ecosystems. This web-based system was initially developed for salt marsh and sea grass vegetation data, and ultimately will serve as a tool for other coastal habitat data.
For more information, please contact Tom Shyka at 207-773-0423, or tom@gomoos.org.
GoMOOS Deploys Near Shore Buoy in New Meadows River (October 11, 2006)
GoMOOS, in partnership with the New Meadows River Watershed Project, Friends of Casco Bay and the Maine Coastal Program, has deployed the first of its kind 
near shore buoy in the main channel of the New Meadows River, west of Bear Island.
This buoy is part of a pilot study using smaller buoys to provide useful near shore data to coastal resource managers. This revolutionary moveable or “mini-buoy” is about half the size of its predecessor and allows GoMOOS to provide more detailed observations in the coastal zone.
The New Meadows River Buoy (named ‘Buoy D’) provides similar real-time data as the existing full-scale oceanographic data buoys - including wind, temperature, currents, salinity, dissolved oxygen and more. Additionally, the current meter and meteorological sensors will allow for the first long-term measurements of the unique circulation of the New Meadows River, while other specialized sensors for chlorophyll and nutrients will monitor conditions that lead to red tide events.
The New Meadows River is an embayment in Eastern Casco Bay that has a strong commercial fishery, a shellfish aquaculture industry and a significant recreational base with public boat access and a marina.
The mini-buoy was designed and deployed by he GoMOOS Buoy Team at the University of Maine. As a result of this pilot project, GoMOOS hopes to be able to provide more moveable coastal buoys in critical Gulf of Maine coastal areas. The GoMOOS mini-buoy design can be used in other similar near shore locations to assist with pressing public policy issues facing coastal and estuarine environments.
Funding was provided by the Maine Technology Institute.
Click here for hourly Buoy D data
Buoy J to remain in the water (October 12, 2006)
UPDATE: GoMOOS is pleased to report that Buoy J will remain in the water for the immediate future. We received tremendous feedback from users in the Eastport area describing the importance and uniqueness of the data provided by this buoy. We are working hard to secure the resources necessary for ongoing maintenance of our buoy program.
PREVIOUS ANNOUNCEMENT (From September 2006):
GoMOOS Plans To Remove Buoy J From Eastport This Fall
In November of 2004, the National Ocean Service of NOAA installed Station PSBM1 - 8410140 - on the fishing pier in Eastport, ME. This real-time NOAA station reports wind speed and direction, wind gusts, atmospheric pressure, pressure tendency, air temperature, water temperature, and water level. This installation makes GoMOOS Buoy J largely redundant. As a cost saving measure, Buoy J will be removed during the annual fall GoMOOS mooring operations in 2006. The data from Station PSBM1 will be readily available on the GOMOOS.org website for GoMOOS users who depend upon meteorological and oceanographic data from this location.
Click here to use our feedback form to send us any comments or concerns regarding the removal of buoy J.
GoMOOS helps predict Right Whale births (February 23, 2006)
With only some 350 individuals alive today, the North Atlantic right whale is critically endangered. Scientists recently discovered that a “chain reaction” of changes in the atmosphere and the ocean ultimately affects the birth rate of right whales. Using computer models developed by the scientists, GoMOOS now provides forecasts of North Atlantic right whale births based on data from GoMOOS Buoy N and other sources.
Click here for more information on Environmental Prediction - Right Whales
FGDC highlights GoMOOS success story (January 20, 2005)
GoMOOS just completed a one-year demonstration project to create a distributed framework data resource that spans international borders and connects more than a dozen regional, State, Federal, Provincial and other types of organizations.
Click on this link to read the complete article:
http://www.fgdc.gov/framework/gulfofmaine.html
New online curriculum for using GoMOOS in the classroom (January 6, 2005)
Are you looking for new ways to incorporate real time oceanographic data into your curriculum? If so, check out the first ocean based Earth Exploration Toolbook chapter entitled:
“When is Dinner Served? Predicting the Spring Phytoplankton Bloom in
the Gulf of Maine”
http://serc.carleton.edu/eet/phytoplankton/index.html
This chapter uses real-time ocean observing buoy data from GoMOOS (Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System) and MODIS satellite images of chlorophyll-a to enable students to predict the timing of the spring phytoplankton bloom in the Gulf of Maine. Users will learn such skills as how to download and graph buoy data from the GoMOOS website and compare these data to satellite images of the Gulf of Maine.
The Earth Exploration Toolbook (EET) provides step-by-step guides for investigating
issues or concepts in Earth system science. Students access data and analysis
tools to produce maps, graphs, images, or other data products to explore these
issues in greater detail. All chapters are reviewed by a panel of teachers
for educational merit, reviewed by scientists to ensure scientific accuracy,
and are tied to the National Science Education Standards. EET is funded by
the National Science Foundation (NSF) through the National Science Digital
Library (NSDL) and is a collection within the Digital Library for Earth System
Education (DLESE).
Gulf of Maine Mapping Portal - Sharing and integrating maps online (October 14, 2004)
GoMOOS is pleased to announce the release of the Gulf of Maine Mapping Portal (GoMMaP) Đ a unique online resource that will enable users of all kinds to merge multiple data sources into a single map. GoMMaP will also serve as a resource for users who want to contribute data using an internationally accepted standard. By accessing data provided by partner institutions, a user can integrate geological data, fisheries data and environmental conditions all on one map. This capability comes from the use of newly published Open GIS Consortium (OGC) standards, which will allow the integrated maps to be created dynamically and in real-time.
"This project represents a critical new capability for the region," said Philip Bogden, CEO at GoMOOS. "The system will impact anyone concerned about the ocean, including fishermen, resource managers, scientists, educators, private companies, and anyone else interested in using informative maps of the ocean. Many of these users have grown to rely on the real-time data from GoMOOS, and now theyŐll have instant access to many other related and critical activities in the region."
GoMMaP is a product of the Gulf of Maine Spatial Data Framework project,
which was funded by the Federal Geographic Data Committee and GeoConnections.
GoMOOS co-led this project with DM Solutions Group of Canada. The project
included many partners including the Canadian Hydrographic Service, Geological
Survey of Canada, U.S. Geological Survey's Woods Hole Field Center, NOAA's
Coastal Services Center, Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment,
NOAA's Northeast Fisheries Science Center, Bedford Institute of Oceanography,
Gulf of Maine Program - Census of Marine Life, and me3 Technology Consultants.
These partners have provided data about the Gulf of Maine along with their
expertise to enable an effective cross-border integration of the data.
GoMOOS Redeploys Buoys (October 4, 2004)
Linda Mangum, Program Manager
Physical Oceanography Group, University of Maine
The 2004 fall turnaround of all 10 GoMOOS moorings started on September 30, 2004 when the R/V Argo Maine departed from Rockland, Maine with University of Maine and Bigelow Laboratory personnel onboard. Scientific personnel are working with the 5-man crew of the Argo Maine to replace each of the GomOOS moorings. Every buoy is replaced approximately every six months with newly refurbished instrumentation and hardware. The recovered buoys and instruments will be returned to the University of Maine and will be refurbished during this winter for redeployment next spring. The ship is working counterclockwise around the Gulf of Maine and has completed operations at buoys N, L, and J by October 2, 2004. The ship will stop in Eastport, Rockland, Portland, and Gloucester (MA) to unload recovered buoys and equipments and to load on new moorings during the next week. It is hoped to have all 10 new moorings in place by October 9, 2004.
The surface meteorological instrumentation on the GoMOOS moorings has been expanded this deployment to include hourly measurements of barometric pressure, in addition to the standard set of surface winds, wave height and period, air temperature, and visibility. Other sensors measure ocean currents, water temperature, and water salinity. All data from the moorings were received hourly at the University of Maine and GoMOOS makes these measurments available to the general public and other organizations including the National Weather Service.
A subset of the moorings have optical sensors from the Bigelow Laboratory of Ocean Sciences. New optical sensors deployed this fall on mooring E,F, and I will measure the input of dissolved organic carbon from the Penobscot River into the Gulf of Maine. Dr. Neal Pettigrew from the University of Maine is the prinicipal investigator in charge of the mooring program and Dr. Colin Roesler from Bigelow is responsible for the optical measurements.
Scientific Party:
John Wallinga, Chief Scientist, University of Maine
Robert Bell, University of Maine
Corrie Roberts/Ralph Bohm, University of Maine
Dan Abraham, Bigelow Laboratory
R/V Argo Maine Crew:
Randy Flood, Captain
Lance Burton, Chief Engineer
Don Bradford, First Mate
Greg Curry, Second Mate
Herb Moody, Cook
GoMOOS Deploys Northeast Channel Buoy (June 6, 2004)
 |
| The Northeast Channel buoy - buoy N - is positioned to monitor the movement of water into the Gulf of Maine. |
GoMOOS, in partnership with the National Marine Fisheries Service and the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Ocean, is pleased to announce the deployment of a new buoy - Buoy N - in the Northeast Channel. The Northeast Channel is a gateway, the deep gut between Georges and Browns Bank where the deep North Atlantic Ocean waters enter the Gulf of Maine.
Both U.S. and Canadian fisheries agencies will be monitoring the water flowing through the Northeast Channel to better understand the effect of deep ocean water on the region’s fisheries. Large-scale shifts in the atmosphere over the Atlantic Ocean (known as the North Atlantic Oscillation), brings either warm slope water or cold Labrador slope water into the Gulf of Maine. These waters also vary in the nutrients they carry, influencing the type and rate of plankton growth. Studies have shown that changes detected at the Northeast Channel are seen six to eight months later in coastal regions and may influence events such as the timing of lobster shedding.
As part of the project, scientists from the University of New Hampshire and Cornell University will be doing research to develop indices for predicting the affect of these changes in the water.
Special thanks goes to the hard working crew at the University of Maine and the ARGO who weathered wind and sloppy seas to deploy the buoy.
Financial support for the buoy is from NOAA’s National Ocean Service.
Click here for more information on the North Atlantic Oscillation
GoMOOS launches a new graphing and download application (June 2, 2004)
Do you often wonder if the sea water temperature was colder this year compared to last year? Would you like to know what month has the strongest winds at sea or the biggest waves? If you find yourself asking these questions, check out the new GoMOOS graphing and download tool.
After much positive feedback to our initial data graphing and download tool, we’ve revised this application to meet many of our users requests for additional functions. Some of the new features include: plotting two parameters on the same graph, plotting data from two different years on the same graph (see example below), graphing daily, weekly and monthly-averaged data and the ability to select between English and metric units. We hope you’ll test out this new application and let us know what you think.
Click here to go to the new graphing and download tool
 |
| This plot reveals that the water temperature at a depth of 50 m (164 feet) was significantly colder this year when compared to temperatures from 2002. |
New graphing and download tool for
environmental data from Maine Department of Marine Resources (April
21, 2004)
The Maine Department of Marine Resources (ME DMR) has been collecting environmental data in Boothbay Harbor for nearly 100 years. Most of this data is recorded in logbooks and is being converted to an electronic format. However, the last 15 years of this data is available electronically. This data include measurements of water and air temperature, salinity, wind speeds, precipitation and more.
GoMOOS and me3 Technology Consultants have collaborated with ME DMR to develop an easy-to-use graphing and download tool that allows scientists, fishermen, and the interested public to make custom graphs and to download this data. New data will be updated daily and notices will be posted when more historical data is made available. This is just one of the steps that GoMOOS and ME DMR are taking to integrate environmental data from the Gulf of Maine.
Go to the ME DMR Graphing and download tool
GoMOOS launches the northern
shrimp information system (February 5, 2004)
Now fishermen and resource managers have a new tool to dynamically access northern shrimp survey results and overlay them on relevant environmental data. Working with state fisheries agencies and the National Marine Fisheries Service, GoMOOS has created a web-based mapping tool that dynamically integrates these important data sets.
Users can interactively view multiple shrimp data sets in combination with GoMOOS bottom temperature data, satellite images, sea floor geology and other important data layers. Dynamic connections to the data providers will keep the shrimp and environmental data up to date. This application provides a new way to explore information about shrimp and the environmental conditions that influence them.
Go to the Northern Shrimp Information System
Final report from data management workshop is now available (October 10, 2003)
Sixty-two scientists, policy makers and technical experts convened on June 12-13, 2003 in Portland, Maine, to review and discuss the Draft U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) Plan for Data Management and Communications (DMAC). The meeting was hosted by the Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System and sponsored by Maine’s NSF EPSCoR Program, NOAA’s Coastal Services Center, and Ocean.US.
The goals of the workshop were to discuss and review the DMAC plan and identify short-term actions to initiate its implementation. In addition, workshop organizers intended for the proceedings to inform deliberations of the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy, and other efforts to reform national marine policy.
Workshop participants found that the proposed plan is feasible and timely.
They endorsed several tenets of IOOS including a focus on users, an organizational
structure based on an association of regional observing systems, and the need
for agreements on data policy, protocols, and standards to begin implementation
of IOOS. Participants identified several demonstration projects that would
be useful in advancing the implementation of IOOS. In addition they suggested
that a newsletter and website be created for the new information system, and
that an IOOS business plan be developed. Click
here to download the workshop report (850k PDF)
Click here to access
the most recent draft of the DMAC plan
Click here to learn more about
the data management workshop and download the workshop presentations and list
of attendees
GoMOOS awarded grant to integrate information about the Gulf of Maine sea floor (September 29, 2003)
GoMOOS and DM Solutions Group have been awarded a Federal Geographic Data Committee Canadian-USA framework data grant. This project is designed to stimulate cross-border cooperation through the coordination and integration of important U.S. and Canadian Gulf of Maine seafloor data.
Throughout this project, multiple U.S. and Canadian agencies will be working together to combine wide-ranging and critical geospatial data sources such as bathymetry, geology, habitat, geopolitical boundaries, pipelines, submarine cables, and more. The integration and publication of this seafloor data into a common web-based geospatial data framework will benefit a wide array of interests including coastal and marine resource management, commercial and recreational fishing, submarine utilities, marine sanctuaries and protected areas, mining, navigation, aquaculture and for anyone interested in information about the bottom of the Gulf.
GoMOOS and DM Solutions Group will partner with an array of U.S. and Canadian organizations including the Canadian Hydrographic Service, Geological Survey of Canada, U.S. Geological Survey’s Woods Hole Field Center, NOAA’s Coastal Services Center, Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment, NOAA’s Northeast Fisheries Science Center, Bedford Institute of Oceanography, Gulf of Maine Program – Census of Marine Life, and Me3 Technology Consultants. These partners will supply seafloor data along with their expertise to enable an effective cross-border integration of the data.
Not only will the project deploy cutting edge technologies for distributed
data management over the Internet but it also represents a new model for information
exchange and interoperability between Canadian and U.S. organizations.
GoMOOS develops interactive tool to display temperature data collected by lobstermen (July 1, 2003)
For the last three years, a group New England lobstermen has been placing temperature sensors on their lobster traps to create a long-term record of bottom temperatures from coastal New England. This monitoring is a partnership between lobstermen and scientists called eMOLT (environmental monitors on lobster traps) and is funded by the Northeast Consortium. Both fishermen and scientists are particularly interested in bottom temperature information since it influences the behavior of many important commercial species, including lobster and shrimp.
GoMOOS, in collaboration with the eMOLT program, has developed an Internet-based tool to display the bottom temperature data collected from the lobster traps along with water temperature data collected by the GoMOOS buoys. This web tool allows you to see the location of GoMOOS buoys and the general location of eMOLT sites and lets you create graphs of eMOLT and GoMOOS water temperature data. The information currently displayed on the web site is presented by the Maine lobster zones.
GoMOOS is particularly excited about this partnership. While all GoMOOS buoys have deep water sensors, none are actually on the bottom. The data from the sensors on the lobster traps allows for a good comparison between the temperatures in the deep waters and those actually on the bottom.
Check it out: eMOLT bottom temperature data
Check out the new GoMOOS feature on the North Atlantic Oscillation (June 26, 2003)
The North Atlantic Oscillation or NAO is a large-scale phenomenon of natural climate variability that has large impacts on weather and climate in the North Atlantic region, similar to the way El Nino influences the Pacific Ocean.
The NAO primarily affects New England weather during the winter. However, the NAO also influences the movement of large water masses in the Atlantic Ocean, which in turn can influence water temperature and marine life in the Gulf of Maine throughout the year. The GoMOOS buoy array was designed in part to detect these changes in water temperature far out in the Gulf and to monitor them as they influence the coastal regions.
To learn more about the NAO, how it may influence the Gulf of Maine and how
GoMOOS could act as an early warning system for NAO induced changes, please
read our new feature on the North Atlantic
Oscillation.
There's a new buoy in the Gulf (June 18, 2003)
NOAA’s National Data Buoy Center (NDBC) recently deployed a new buoy approximately 20NM Southeast of Jonesport, Maine. This buoy, station 44027, reports hourly measurements of wind speed and direction, wave height and period, air and water temperature, salinity, dew point and atmospheric pressure. You can view these hourly readings at www.gomoos.org or www.ndbc.noaa.gov.
GoMOOS has also added two other NOAA NDBC buoys to our buoy map to give our
users access to all available buoy data in the Gulf of Maine. These NOAA buoys
are station 44011 located on Georges Bank, 170NM East of Hyannis, MA and station
44018 located Southeast of Cape Cod, 10NM East of Nantucket, MA.
GoMOOS Hosts National Ocean Observing Workshop (June 9, 2003)
Ocean scientists and engineers from Maine and around the nation will gather in Portland, Maine June 11-13 to discuss the creation of a national ocean observing system. The meeting is sponsored by the Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System (GoMOOS) and the University of Maine’s Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR). The goal is to establish an analog of the National Weather Service for the nation’s oceans, a system that will routinely collect data on ocean conditions and make the information available, free of charge, to fishermen, government officials, mariners, educators, scientists and the general public.
Ocean experts from around the country will be in Portland to discuss plans to integrate the regional system with the national effort. “The challenge is to integrate regional systems that are responsive to the particular needs of their area, such as oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico and the lobster fishery in the Gulf of Maine, into a seamless national system,” says Philip Bogden, CEO of GoMOOS.
A key goal of the workshop is to review a data management and communications
plan that will knit together all the regional systems into an integrated national
network. “This workshop will help define the critical data management
and delivery framework that will allow ocean observing systems around the
country to effectively bring their information to the people that need it,”
adds Bogden.
Portland Press Herald article (June 12, 2003): Scientists studying ocean data network
Portland Press Herald editorial (June 13, 2003): Nationwide ocean data would serve many needs
Spring in the Gulf of Maine: Watch the Bloom Happen (April 30, 2003)
 |
| These disc shaped phytoplankton
are called diatoms, which are common in the spring bloom.
|
- mixing caused by winter storms has brought deep-water nutrients into the surface waters
- the seasonal progression of the sun has increased the light level critical for phytoplankton to grow
- the sun has warmed the surface waters, creating a density gradient that stabilizes the surface waters and prevents the phytoplankton from being mixed into deeper waters away from the sunlight
- low concentrations of zooplankton, which are tiny planktonic animals that graze on phytoplankton, result in unchecked phytoplankton growth
This combination of abundant nutrients, ample sunlight and few zooplankton grazers are the ingredients needed by phytoplankton to undergo a bloom.
 |
| Three
GoMOOS buoys are equipped with specialized sensors to measure chlorophyll
concentration and properties of sunlight entering the water. |
 |
The onset of the spring bloom can be seen in recent readings from GoMOOS buoy B, which shows a rapid increase in chlorophyll concentration.
|
The spring bloom can be seen by viewing chlorophyll concentration data on
the GoMOOS graphing
and download tool or the biological
data page. Since the spring bloom typically progresses from southwest
to northeast along the New England coast, increases in chlorophyll concentrations
are expected to occur at Buoy B first, then at buoys E and I in the weeks
to come.
Additionally, you can look at the graphs
for water temperature for each buoy individually. What do you notice about
the water temperature at each depth from buoy B to E to I? As the surface
water warms, it becomes stratified and stable, one of the requirements for
a phytoplankton bloom. How does the timing of stratification change from B
to I? Can you predict when a bloom is likely to occur at each location?
Senator Snowe cites GoMOOS as an outstanding example of a regional Ocean Observing System (March 27, 2003)
In a Congressional hearing on March 12, 2003, U.S. Senator Olympia J. Snowe, Chair of the Commerce Subcommittee on Oceans, Fisheries, and Coast Guard recognized the Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System (GoMOOS) as a successful example of a regional Ocean Observing System.
"The nation must move toward a Global Ocean and Observing System, which will provide us with critical environmental data that will be utilized to improve fisheries modeling and management, coastal planning, and harmful algal blooms management and mitigation. The Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System is an outstanding example of what we are trying to do," Snowe said. Senator Snowe has been a leading advocate in fighting for Congressional authorization and funding for GoMOOS.
GoMOOS Buoys Detect Formation of Arctic Sea Smoke in the Gulf of Maine (February 12, 2003)
Thanks to a partnership between the National Weather Service (NWS) and GoMOOS, shrimpers and other vessels working the waters in winter can detect potentially dangerous arctic sea smoke as it forms. Dense patches of arctic sea smoke, a type of fog that develops in cold weather, have been forming in the Gulf of Maine as a result of the arctic air mass that has settled over the Northeast United States. With the help of GoMOOS, the NWS has a new tool to detect and forecast these patchy but potentially hazardous conditions. The NWS has been using visibility readings from sensors mounted on the GoMOOS buoys to monitor the formation of arctic sea smoke in the Gulf of Maine.
Arctic sea smoke is a type of fog that forms primarily when cold air passes over warmer waters. GoMOOS buoys are ideally equipped to detect the formation of this fog because of specialized sensors that make real-time measurements of visibility, air and water temperature. For example, surface water temperature from the GoMOOS buoy south of Mt. Desert Island has recently hovered around 41°F in contrast to the colder air (as low as 7 °F). As a result, visibility at this same buoy has, at times, been reduced to well under a quarter of a mile. The NWS uses this information to forecast the development of these hazardous conditions.
A meteorologist with NOAA’s National Weather Service in Gray, Maine, commented: “The GoMOOS observations have been invaluable regarding the visibility forecasts in our marine program. With this new capability we are able to get critical information about hazardous conditions to the people working on the water.”
Portland Press Herald article: New ocean sensors alert mariners to sea smoke
GoMOOS is featured in Maine PBS' QUEST: Investigating Our World Television Series (January 27, 2003)
Airing Tuesday, January 28th at 8:00 PM, the QUEST television series will investigate how remote sensing is used to help us better understand our environment. This episode of QUEST highlights GoMOOS’ role in using satellite images and offshore buoys to provide critical information about the Gulf of Maine.
QUEST is a unique television series that will provide the opportunity to investigate and learn about our world and geographical features of Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire. The series includes companion lesson plans, family activity pages, community guides to activities and events, and more! The companion lessons for the remote sensing episode utilize the GoMOOS website as a source of remote sensing images and of information about the Gulf of Maine.
For more information about QUEST and to download their lesson plans or other
activities, log on to: www.mainepbs.org.
New Data Graphing and Download Tool (January 16, 2003)
GoMOOS is pleased to announce the launch of a new graphing and download tool.
This easy-to-use tool allows you to access and explore weather and oceanographic
information collected by the GoMOOS buoys.
Anyone interested in the Gulf of Maine can visually explore both recent and historical weather and oceanographic information. For example, a fisherman may compare their catch data to temperature trends or major storms while a scientist might investigate water column mixing by viewing wind, water temperature, salinity and density data. Through the data graphing function you can easily create custom graphs by selecting the data type and desired time frame. The data download function allows you to select the data type, time frame and data format for a custom download.
Overall, the data graphing and download tool is an essential addition to the GoMOOS website that will give the many users of GoMOOS greater access to information about the Gulf of Maine. A link to this tool can be found on the main menu of our home page or you can get there using this link, Data Graphing and Download. Log on and try it yourself.
UNH to host MODIS Ocean Data Workshop
(December 10, 2002)
On February 3-4, 2003, the University of New Hampshire will host the first
regional workshop on MODIS ocean data products. This workshop will provide
a comprehensive summary of the status of the 48 data products derived from
MODIS ocean color and infrared measurements. Members of the MODIS Ocean Science
Team and the Goddard DAAC will cover step-by-step details of the processing,
distribution, analysis, and interpretation of the MODIS Ocean variables. The
workshop will also include a hands-on computer tutorial to take participants
through details of data ordering, reprojection, reformatting and other technical
tools.
For more details and to register, please see: http://www.opal.sr.unh.edu/modisworkshop/
GoMOOS Wave Period Data Will Improve
Safety of Marine Operations in the Gulf of Maine (December 6, 2002)
Wave period information is now available on the GoMOOS hourly buoy data page.
Wave period is the time it takes for two successive wave crests to pass a
given point and the dominant wave period is the period with the maximum wave
energy. Dominant wave period measurements typically range from 2 seconds to
12 seconds in the Gulf of Maine.
This information is crucial to mariners because the wave period can directly affect the stability of a vessel. A large amount of oil is shipped across the Gulf of Maine in barges, which are more susceptible to changes in wave conditions then conventional ships. The hourly reporting of wave information from the GoMOOS buoys throughout the Gulf of Maine can improve the safety and efficiency of these and other marine operations by helping mariners avoid potentially hazardous conditions.
GoMOOS Information Now Available on
MaineToday.com (October 24, 2002)
The Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System (GoMOOS) is excited to announce our
new partnership with MaineToday.com, the Portland Press Herald's website.
GoMOOS now provides the MaineToday.com
weather page with hourly updates on wind speed and direction, water and
air temperature, and visibility from the GoMOOS Casco Bay buoy, which is located
6.5 nautical miles east of Portland headlight. This information is also available
on the outdoors activities pages of MaineToday.com that deal with coastal
recreation. This mutually beneficial partnership enhances the ability of the
general public and outdoor enthusiast to access GoMOOS information. Additionally,
readers interested in other ocean conditions from the Casco Bay buoy or other
buoys are directed to the GoMOOS website. This direct link to the GoMOOS site
will increase the number of visitors and also serve to increase awareness
of the variety of information available on the GoMOOS site.
Dial-A-Buoy service now available
(September 26, 2002)
The Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System (GoMOOS) is pleased to annouce that
buoy observations are now available over a touch-tone or cell phone. This
is made possible by a partnership with the National Atmospheric and Oceanic
Administration's (NOAA) National Data
Buoy Center (NDBC), which has recently made GoMOOS real-time weather and
ocean condition information available through their Dial-A-Buoy service.
By calling the NDBC's dial-a-buoy service, a mariner at sea can now receive real-time observations from ten GoMOOS buoys located throughout the Gulf of Maine. Prior to this, GoMOOS observations were only available on the web or from radio and television weather updates. This service greatly increases the accessibility of the GoMOOS buoy observations and has many potential benefits to both recreational and commercial mariners including improving planning, safety, and efficiency. Please see Dial-A-Buoy instructions below.
Dial in for the latest conditions
Hear the Latest Buoy and C-MAN observations via computer-generated voice by
calling the National Data Buoy Center's Dial-A-Buoy service at (228)
688-1948. If you know the station identifier, choose option 1 and
enter the five-digit (or character) identifier at the prompt.
If you do not know the identifier, choose option 2 for the nearest stations to a latitude and longitude entry. Or, choose option 3 to receive a map by fax showing station locations, just enter your fax number.
| GoMOOS Buoy and Location | NOAA Station Identifier | |
|---|---|---|
| A | Mass. Bay/Stellwagen | 44029 |
| B | W. Maine Shelf | 44030 |
| C | Casco Bay | 44031 |
| E | Central Maine Shelf | 44032 |
| F | W. Penobscot Bay | 44033 |
| I | E. Maine Shelf | 44034 |
| J | Cobscook Bay | 44035 |
| K | Saint John | 44036 |
| L | Scotian Shelf | 44038 |
| M | Jordan Basin | 44037 |
NOAA station identifiers for all NOAA buoys and C-MAN stations can be found on the National Data Buoy Center's website.
GoMOOS featured in article about Weather
Forecasts in the Gulf of Maine (Aug 12, 2002)
One of the feature articles in the August edition of "The Working Waterfront"
is on weather forecasts. In the article, John Cannon, weather forecaster for
the National Weather Service in Gray discusses the importance of the GoMOOS
in weather predictions: "It's a finer mesh of weather data the likes of which
we've never seen before" say John Cannon.
For the full article, click here
Testimony for the U. S. Commission
on Ocean Policy (July 24, 2002)
Submitted by Dr. Philip Bogden, CEO
Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System, Inc. (GoMOOS)
Presented in Boston, Massachusetts, July 23, 2002
The History and Future of GoMOOS: Elements of a Successful Partnership
Admiral Watkins and distinguished members of the Commission, thank you for this opportunity to brief you on GoMOOS, the Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System. GoMOOS is a prototype regional, user-driven, coastal ocean observing system. As such, our immediate goal is to provide data and information to serve a wide variety of public and private sector needs for decision-making, problem solving, and research in the Gulf of Maine. Our long-term goal is to become an element of the national coastal ocean observing system as conceived in several recent reports [1,2,3].
GoMOOS has two major components, a technical component, which includes the infrastructure for acquiring, managing, archiving, and disseminating oceanographic and meteorologic data on an hourly basis, and an institutional component, which allows GoMOOS to operate as an effective partnership within the region. The institutional component may represent the biggest breakthrough in the concept of implementing a national coastal ocean observing system. After a brief overview of the technical program, I would like to focus on the history of the organization, review some user feedback, and present some recommendations that will allow us to succeed as part of an integrated, national system.
Technical Program
GoMOOS has partnered with the research community to implement a versatile
and state-of-the-art observing system for the Gulf of Maine. The international
partnership includes the University of Maine, Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean
Sciences, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and Bedford Institute of Oceanography
in Canada. The infrastructure includes over a dozen moored buoys that measure
weather at the ocean surface and a wide variety of physical and biological
properties throughout the water column. We augment these point measurements
with hourly Gulf-wide maps of currents from shore-based radar, and satellite
images of the ocean surface. And computer models use these data for environmental
predictions.
The data management system is as versatile and expandable as the measurement program. Our objective is to provide a clearinghouse for data collected by GoMOOS and for related data collected by other organizations, to convert that data to useful information, and to disseminate that information in a timely way for all interested users.
Institutional Structure - The History
When GoMOOS was first conceived, its founders began with the paradigm of most
other coastal ocean observing systems: that of a research program. But the
founders soon realized that a different paradigm was needed to overcome three
important limitations of the research model. First, existing research institutions
in the region were suspicious of what appeared to be the creation of a competing
organization, one that would survive only by eating into the resources upon
which existing universities and research labs depend. It became clear that
the region did not need another competing organization. Rather, the region
needed infrastructure that would enable existing institutions to pursue their
work more effectively.
Second, in the research model the capital assets and data management system would be designed and deployed to answer research questions. It would be assumed that the observations and predictive capacity thus gained would be useful to other sectors as well, including shipping, fisheries, search and rescue, and so on. Such spin-off benefits would be incidental in a research program, not primary. But, to sustain long-term support and funding, the many user groups must see the system as essential to them, and designed specifically to help solve their problems in a timely way.
Third, the research model did not provide a path to operations. It was difficult to project how the system would evolve into a 24-by-7 operation when such a mode may be inconsistent with the mission and objectives of the principal investigators and their academic and research institutions. Researchers are not interested in the long-term, mundane and demanding maintenance requirements of an operational system.
Thus, a different model was required. The founders of GoMOOS turned to the model of a cooperative utility which, in many ways, is the converse of the research model. GoMOOS is organized as a nonprofit corporation; a membership organization whose members represent the broad array of users in the Gulf. It is a service organization governed by a Board of Directors, its Board is drawn from the membership, it has a chief executive officer who understands the science and answers to the Board, it is targeted to user needs as determined by market analysis, its mission is the dissemination of data and information upon which many, including researchers, can rely for a variety of purposes, and it requires long-term funding. GoMOOS evolved conceptually from a research organization that needs infrastructure to an infrastructure organization that will support research in an impartial, comprehensive manner. This approach has enabled many different interests to participate with the confidence that GoMOOS will be a shared platform for many.
Transition to Operations
After two years of development and implementation at a cost of roughly $10M,
GoMOOS is beginning the transition to an operational system. The transition
has two overriding implications. First, existing relationships with research
partners will be revised to create a clear path for moving appropriate technologies
to operational status. Second, GoMOOS will restructure operations around a
core suite of reliable data to serve regional and national needs. In this
new mode of operations, GoMOOS will continue to support the development and
implementation of new technologies, but these will not be held to the same
operational standards. The objective is operational infrastructure that continually
evolves through partnerships with the research community.
Meeting User Needs
The user community, as represented by our Board, will help set the priorities
for the future. The GoMOOS membership is evidence of the broad support for
the promise of ocean observing from users within and outside the research
community. GoMOOS provides a natural forum for these stakeholders in the system.
An ongoing dialog allows the scientists to work with other users to identify
achievable near term goals. In the long term, the hope is that user feedback
will stimulate research agendas in the direction of meeting user needs.
Our structure as a user-driven organization virtually guarantees the relevance of our products. The GoMOOS mission includes an ongoing commitment to discovering user needs and to assuring an appropriate response.
Our first major effort to convert data to useful information led to the present version of our web site, gomoos.org. Design criteria targeted users who need real-time data, including mariners, commercial fishermen, and recreational boaters. For these users, GoMOOS augments the Weather Service buoys with improved regional coverage and with new kinds of observations, such as fog. As a result, harbor pilots have become dependent on GoMOOS data for helping to navigate oil tankers through some of the most productive lobster fisheries in the world. The positive feedback has extended outside our targeted users to include Weather Service forecasters, the U.S. Coast Guard, and others. In fact, at the request of fishermen, NOAA now reports information from GoMOOS buoys on their daily weather-radio broadcasts.
Environmental managers are important users for GoMOOS data as demonstrated by the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA). The MWRA is responsible for the Boston sewage outfall that pumps effluent into Massachusetts Bay. A GoMOOS buoy monitors water quality upstream of the outfall, which allows the MWRA to distinguish the impact of the outfall from other environmental factors. This issue affects communities around neighboring Cape Cod Bay and endangered marine mammals in the adjacent Stellwagen National Marine Sanctuary.
The aquaculture industry needs GoMOOS data for choosing aquaculture sites, for scallop-spat collection, and for evaluating the environmental impact of their activities.
The fishing industry wants data that leads to more informed resource management. To this end, we're working with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans in Canada and the NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service. Together we hope to add a new sentinel buoy to the GoMOOS array. Recent studies show that data from this buoy could produce 6-9 month predictions of the effects of climate variation in the western Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank. Our partners hope to use the data to help predict and manage groundfish stocks and other demersal species.
Researchers are benefiting from the growing number of funded research proposals to use GoMOOS data and the GoMOOS infrastructure. These include projects to understand and predict harmful algal blooms, and modeling activities that will enhance the rapid environmental assessment needs of the Navy, our primary sponsor.
For education and outreach, GoMOOS is partnering with nonprofit organizations on our Board on projects that will use GoMOOS data to further their respective outreach missions. The entire system stands to benefit from their efforts to increase public awareness and appreciation of ocean science. When it comes to capturing the imagination, there is no substitute for the dynamic character of real-time observations.
Needs for Future Success
As a nation, we have the technology and we have the need, we have only to
allocate the resources necessary to create and sustain a national system.
A recent NOAA cost/benefit analysis quantified the benefits from GoMOOS in
dollar terms. Their conservative estimate of $30M/year exceeds operating costs
by a factor of ten. In human terms, they estimated that GoMOOS observations
applied to Coast Guard search and rescue could save six or more lives per
year in the Gulf of Maine alone. We need to expand these benefits to the national
scale.
In closing, I would like to propose three recommendations that will allow the GoMOOS partnership to continue, and will allow nascent systems in other regions to benefit as well:
- Long-term federal funding for a national coastal ocean observing system,
- Support for the national system as a federation of regional systems, and
- Coordination at the national level between the regional systems and the relevant federal agencies.
Perhaps all three objectives could occur through expansion of the National Oceanographic Partnership Program and related offices such as Ocean.US. Certainly this approach would promote interagency partnerships, minimize duplication of efforts, and foster an integrated system that benefits all participants. As a pilot for the national system, GoMOOS anxiously awaits the outcome of your recommendations.
References
[1] Ocean.US, 2002. "An Integrated and Sustained Ocean Observing System (IOOS)
for the United States: Design and Implementation." Ocean.US, Arlington, VA.
21pp.
[2] R. Frosch and The Ocean Observations Task Team, December 1999. "An Integrated
Ocean Observing System: A Strategy for Implementing the First Steps of a U.S.
Plan."
[3] W. Nowlin and T. Malone, April 1999. "Toward a U.S. Plan for an Integrated,
Sustained Ocean Observing System."
[All three documents are available online at http://www.ocean.us.net/]
GoMOOS Produces Poster Aimed at Recreational Users
(July 23, 2002)This poster is part of a public awareness campaign to let people know about the type of information available from the GoMOOS. It is aimed at the summer recreational boaters for whom real-time information can help ensure their safety and pleasure while on the water. For copies of the poster, please contact Jodi Clark at 773-0423 or jodi@gomoos.org.
First GoMOOS buoys begin reporting wave
data (March 26, 2002)
Buoy C (Casco Bay) has begun reporting wave data. In January, wave reporting
software was added to Buoys L (Scotian Shelf), F (Penobscot Bay) and I (Eastern
Maine Shelf). The data will be reported on the web site once GoMOOS scientists
at the University of Maine and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution have
verified that the new software is working correctly.
GoMOOS research with users has shown that wind and wave data are highly valued by mariners. This new information will include significant wave height and period (distance between waves), and will greatly expand the number of locations in the Gulf of Maine reporting wave information.
GoMOOS launches redesigned web site
(February 5, 2001)
The launch of this redesigned website in February 2002 represents Phase I
in the overall development of the GoMOOS website. Phase I focused on the real-time
data needs of fishermen, pilots and mariners who rely on up-to-date information
to make daily decisions. It is based on direct input and testing by many web
users from those groups.
This new website includes a flexible design that will grow and change as GoMOOS adds data products and resources to meet the needs of its diverse audience.
Phase 2 is already underway. It will focus on the needs of educators and marine resource managers. Like Phase I, it will be shaped by field research and testing among the target audience groups.
Congressional appropriations complete
(February 1, 2001)
The fiscal year 2002 Defense budget signed into law in early January 2002
contained $1.5 million to support GoMOOS operational needs. In the wake of
September 11, our country is facing unprecedented demands on its financial
resources. We are pleased and appreciative that with this recent round of
continued funding Congress has recognized the ongoing importance and contributions
of GoMOOS. Over the next few months, GoMOOS will work with the Navy to put
in place a program plan for the fiscal year 2002 funds.
Alliance for Coastal Technologies (ACT)
(January 8, 2002)
The ACT is a partnership of technology developers, deliverers and users within
regional, state and federal environmental communities. GoMOOS is a partner
in this recently funded NOAA initiative.
The idea for ACT came from a series of workshops sponsored by NOAA’s Coastal Services Center. Coastal resource managers need to be able to more effectively monitor environments and natural resources.
ACT intends to establish a test bed for demonstrating, evaluating and verifying innovative technologies in monitoring sensors, platforms and software. The ACT proposal included a GoMOOS budget totaling $300,000. We hope to have word soon that funds will become available in May.
First Buoys Deployed (July 15,
2001)
The GoMOOS moored buoy program began in force last week, with the first four
(4) buoys deployed this summer. GoMOOS chief scientist Dr. Neal Pettigrew
of University of Maine successfully deployed the first four buoys along the
shelf in the Western Gulf, including the Stellwagen Marine Sanctuary buoy
offshore of Gloucester, Massachusetts (buoy A), the Western Maine Shelf offshore
of Portsmouth, New Hampshire (buoy B), the Central Maine Shelf buoy offshore
of Boothbay Harbor, Maine (buoy E), and the West Penobscot Bay buoy offshore
of Rockland, Maine (buoy F). Sometime in the next few days, Dr. Jim Irish
of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution will be deploying a fifth deep-water
mooring (buoy M) in the middle of Jordan Basin halfway between Yarmouth, Nova
Scotia and Portland, Maine. Another deployment of coastal buoys will take
place in a week, and then the final deployment for the summer is scheduled
for late August. Access to real-time observations from the shelf buoys can
be obtained from the buoy-data link on the GoMOOS home page at www.gomoos.org.
New data products will be added to this site over the next year as part of
an intensive web-site development project.
Navy/GoMOOS partnership for improved
weather forecasts (July 9, 2001)
The U. S. Navy and GoMOOS have entered into a partnership that could improve
weather forecasts throughout the Gulf of Maine and increase the safety of
marine operations for everyone. U. S. Navy meteorologists at the Brunswick
Naval Air Station (BNAS) in Maine have started providing site-specific daily
weather forecasts for GoMOOS, and they will soon be using GoMOOS data to improve
forecast accuracy. Both the Navy and the National Weather Service, which is
part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), produce
marine weather forecasts for the coastal United States. While NOAA produces
forecasts everywhere along the coast, the Navy specializes in local regional
forecasts as part of its rapid environmental assessment capability. The Navy
supplements NOAA forecasts with different data sources and their own specialized
computer models. Brunswick Naval Air Station will use this capability to produce
three such regional forecasts for GoMOOS. These forecasts will be publicly
available via the GoMOOS home page at www.gomoos.org. Commander Steven Rutherford
of BNAS feels that a partnership with GoMOOS will allow the Navy to provide
noticeably more accurate forecasts, particularly near the Canadian border
in Eastport, where there are no NOAA buoys. In fact, GoMOOS will be working
closely with both the Navy and the National Weather Service at NOAA to facilitate
more accurate marine forecasts throughout the region.
Request for Proposals (April 27,
2001)
(Note: GoMOOS is no longer accepting proposals in response to this request.)
The Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System (GoMOOS) requests proposals for development
and implementation of an Oracle-based web site that will visualize, retrieve
and deliver GoMOOS data. The site shall provide a wide variety of ocean-data
products in real-time with hourly updates. (See the complete request for proposals
for further information).
GoMOOS joins the ACT. (March
20, 2001)
Evan Richert and Philip Bogden participated in a meeting of the Alliance for
Coastal Technologies (ACT). The ACT is a consortium of coastal ocean observing
systems distributed across the country. The mission is to help coastal managers
and marine-based organizations obtain access to the latest technologies for
coastal ocean monitoring. The mission will be accomplished by providing a
service that looks something like an Underwriters Laboratory for coastal technologies.
In cooperation with the NOAA Coastal Services Center, the Alliance will serve
as a scientific/technical facility with standard protocols for moving experimental
technologies to the field. Rigorous trials will document cost, performance,
and market potential, thereby providing timely information to the diverse
community of potential end-users. The GoMOOS Board of Directors approved membership
at their meeting in January, 2001.
GoMOOS hires CEO. (February 1, 2001)
The Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System has hired Dr. Philip Bogden as the
new Chief Executive Officer. Philip is a respected oceanographer with previous
faculty positions at Yale University and The University of Connecticut. He
has a keen interest in operations, and instituted an ocean observing system
off the shores of Long Island, New York. He coordinated a team of scientists
and engineers from industry, the U. S. Navy, MIT, Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institution, and The University of Rhode Island. He also has a strong background
in high performance computing, and founded the $2M Sun Microsystems Center
of Excellence in Marine Sciences. He was selected from a pool of more than
75 candidates in a national search.