Scientific Cabled Observatories

1
Scientific Cabled Observatories for Time Series
(SCOTS)
NSF SCOTS Workshop Portsmouth, VA August 26-28,
2002 SCOTS Steering Committee Scott Glenn
(co-chair), Tommy Dickey (co-chair) Jim
Bellingham, Yi Chao, Fred Duennebier, Ann
Gargett, Dave Karl, Lauren Mullineax, Dave
Musgrave, Clare Reimers, Don Wright, Mark
Zumberge Bob Weller (ex-officio) Alex Isern,
Bill Fornes, Shelby Walker Pre-Workshop Meeting
in Belmont, MD Portsmouth Workshop 50
Participants Subdivided into 6 science and 1
technology work groups Theme of science synergies
emerged
Prepared by SCOTS Steering Committee
2
Scientific Cabled Observatories for Time Series
(SCOTS)
Workshop Goals

• Assist in planning NSF cabled observatory
  initiative
• Define science problems best addressed with
  cabled approach
• Describe technological capabilities and
  challenges
• Suggest sensors, sampling strategies, array
  designs, and possible locations for science
  problems relevant to cabled approach
• Identify synergistic opportunities w.r.t.
  science, technology, and other non-cabled
  observing systems (coastal, open ocean)
• Provide community input for SCOTS Report

Prepared by SCOTS Steering Committee
3
Scientific Cabled Observatories for Time Series
(SCOTS)
SCOTS Report Schedule Scientific Cabled
Observatories for Time Series April  
Co-Chairs Established May
Steering Committee Formed July 16-17
Steering Committee Meeting Belmont August
26-29 Open Workshop Portsmouth Septembe
r 26-29 Draft Report Sections Due October 15
Draft Report Circulated to
Workshop Participants Octobe
r 23 Comments Due Back November 1-8
Edited Report Available for
Public Comment, 6
Reviewers Nov 15 -Dec 3 All Comments
In Nov 25 - Dec 13 Final Report
Submitted  
SCOTS Report Scientific Cabled Observatories for
Time Series DRAFT October 21, 2002   Based on a
community workshop at the Portsmouth Renaissance
Conference Center Portsmouth, VA August 26-28,
2002   Compiled by the SCOTS Steering
Committee   Tommy Dickey, Co-Chair Ocean Physics
Lab University of California, Santa Barbara Scott
M. Glenn, Co-Chair Coastal Ocean Observation
Lab Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences,
Rutgers University     Jim Bellingham Monterey
Bay Aquarium Research Institute Yi Chao Jet
Propulsion Laboratory California Inst. Of
Technology Fred Duennebier Dept. of Geology and
Geophysics, University of Hawaii Ann
Gargett Center for Coastal Physical Oceanography,
Old Dominion University Dave Karl Dept. of
Oceanography, University of Hawaii Lauren
Mullineaux Dept. of Geology and Geophysics,
University of Hawaii Dave Musgrave School of
Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, University of
Alaska - Fairbanks Clare Reimers College of
Oceanic Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State
University Bob Weller Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institution Don Wright Virginia Institute of
Marine Science, College of William and Mary Mark
Zumberge Institute of Geophysics and Planetary
Physics, University of California, San Diego
Prepared by SCOTS Steering Committee
4
Scientific Cabled Observatories for Time Series
(SCOTS)
NSF Ocean Observatories Initiative
Historical Perspective
NSF Decadal Committee Ocean Sciences at The New
Millennium Identified 6 cross-cutting science
themes and 1 technology theme (long-term time
series) with important and promising
opportunities NRC Committee on Seafloor
Observatories Illuminating The Hidden
Planet Identified major science problems under
each theme for which geographically
distributed long-term time series would be
very useful or useful NSF SCOTS
Committee Identify science questions under each
theme that are best addressed with cabled
observatories

• Science Themes
• Earth Structure and Dynamics of the Ocean
  Lithosphere
• Fluids and Life in the Oceanic Crust
• Coastal Ocean Processes
• Turbulent Mixing and Biophysical Interactions
• Ecosystem Dynamics
• Ocean and Climate/
• Biogeochemical Cycling

Prepared by SCOTS Steering Committee
5
Scientific Cabled Observatories for Time Series
(SCOTS)
Cabled Observatory Concepts

• Short cables to coastal or deep water sites.
• Long telecommunication cables to remote sites.
• Regional scale looped cables, with multiple
  measurement sites
• deep water and coastal.

Prepared by SCOTS Steering Committee
6
Scientific Cabled Observatories for Time Series
(SCOTS)
Earth Structure and Dynamics of the Ocean
Lithosphere
Science Questions 1) Deep Earth structure of
core, core mantle boundary, mantle convection 2)
Regional Dynamics Neo-Tectonics variability
of stresses and deformations across plate
boundaries, variability of seismic activity 3)
Volcanic Processes nature, extent, variability
of submarine vulcanism Why Cabled
Observatories 1) Lack of paths through the depth
Earth to remote locations 2) Local long-term
arrays to detect small earthquakes along
spreading centers 3) Local long-term arrays to
monitor submarine vulcanism around hot spots
Prepared by SCOTS Steering Committee
7
Scientific Cabled Observatories for Time Series
(SCOTS)
Fluids and Life in the Oceanic Crust
Science Questions Cross-cutting questions 1)
What drives change in the subsurface
biosphere? 2) Does sub-seafloor biological
activity affect pore fluid chemistry,
circulation, or fluxes? 3) What is the rate of
biomass production by chemosynthetic
processes? Specific environments for
detailed science questions 1)
Ridge/Hydrothermal Systems 2) Continental
Margins 3) Coastal Zones Why Cabled
Observatories 1) Long-term and reliable
environmental and seimological time
series 2) Responsive event sampling 3)
Concentrate on a small number of
geographically diverse sites
Prepared by SCOTS Steering Committee
8
Scientific Cabled Observatories for Time Series
(SCOTS)
Cabled Observatories for Study of Coastal Ocean
Processes
Science Questions Cross-cutting Issues for
Coastal Observatories 1) Synoptic scale
interactions between coastal ocean and
atmosphere during storms and longer
time scales 2) Input of river-supplied buoyancy,
nutrients, sediments and toxins on physics,
chemistry, biology, and geology of the
coastal ocean. Cabled Observatory Component
- Water column mixing and vertical fluxes,
benthic processes, air-sea interaction, decadal
affects of climate change, across-shelf fluxes
and flux gradients, dynamics of plumes,
wave-current dynamics in heterogeneous
environments Why Cabled Observatories 1) Threats
to instrumentation real-time data 2) Turbulence
, nutrients, suspended sediment, optical
and acoustic imagery require large data
rates 3) Multiple sensors require large power
supplies
B
Prepared by SCOTS Steering Committee
9
Scientific Cabled Observatories for Time Series
(SCOTS)
Turbulent Mixing and Biophysical Interactions
Turbulent Mixing and Phytoplankton Community
Structure
Science Questions Phytoplankton community
structure 1) Interaction of turbulent motion,
stratification light fields, nutrient
supplies 2) Formatting dissolution and export of
marine show how upper-ocean turbulence
effect marine snow Benthic community
structure How does turbulent bottom boundary
layer structure influence benthic
communities? Why Cabled Observatories 1) High
power/high data rates dissipating scale
microsensors, multifrequency acoustics,
video/still photography 2) Extended time presence
cross correlation analysis of multiple
realizations 3) Experience at cabled sites
translated to non- cabled sites
Prepared by SCOTS Steering Committee
10
Scientific Cabled Observatories for Time Series
(SCOTS)
Ecosystem Dynamics
Scientific Questions 1) Pelagic response to upper
ocean variation (deep basin) 2) Benthic or
bentho-pelagic response to upper ocean
variation (deep-sea/productive shelf) 3)
Benthic and pelagic response to seafloor
hydrothermal activity (deep hydrothermal
vent and marginal cold-seep) 4) Studies of
human effects observational and
manipulative Why Cabled Observatories 1) Many
different species require a wide variety of
sampling techniques video, acoustics, water and
particle samples 2) Multiple co-located sensors
high power, high bandwidth, flexible
sampling 3) Long-term continuous time series
required at multiple sites spanning coastal
to deep sea
Prepared by SCOTS Steering Committee
11
Scientific Cabled Observatories for Time Series
(SCOTS)
Ocean and Climate /Biogeochemical Cycling
Scientific Questions 1) Describe, understand,
predict the impact of climate change
/variability (ENSO, PDO, NAO) on small-scale
regional processes. 2) Quantify the role of
regional carbon cycling in the global
carbon budget. 3) Biogeochemical cycling
effect of events within long-time
series. Why Cabled Observatories 1) Requires
long-term spatial measurements Phased
implementation aided by OSSEs. Open ocean
and coastal. 2) New data to improve
small-scale models of regional processes 3)
Bandwidth power high frequency sampling
of high spectral resolution optics, video,
multi- wavelength acoustics, and power for
AUVs
Prepared by SCOTS Steering Committee
12
Scientific Cabled Observatories for Time Series
(SCOTS)
Technology to Support Regional Scale Cabled
Observatories
Present Systems- Short systems (lt100km)
Telecommunication cables Next Generation
Cables Several thousand kilometers Gigabit
Ethernet 100 kW shore-power 10 kW per node Max
node spacing lt100 km Cable Infrastructure Cable
Shore Station Branching Units Scientific
Nodes Other elements Data management and
archiving Community Sensors Support vessels
ROVs AUVs Docking facilities Governance Issues
Prepared by SCOTS Steering Committee
13
Scientific Cabled Observatories for Time Series
(SCOTS)
Discussion Points

• Was the SCOTS Workshop representative of the
  community?
• Widespread support for moving telecommunication
  cables to complete the deep
• Earth array
• Approximately equal support for regional plate
  scale and regional coastal scale
• cabled observatories
• Can the same cabled system support both coastal
  and deep ocean?
• Coastal Scale East Coastal-Cable Tie
• Plate Scale Juan de Fuca Neptune
• Some critical regional-scale technologies still
  require testing
• Are there sufficient ROVs to maintain the system?
• What part of a regional observatory can a MREFC
  support?

Prepared by SCOTS Steering Committee