ALBERT

Description: This document, which is directed at the fishing sector, researchers, conservationists and fishery administrators, was developed by researchers who are members of the Specialists Group for Marine Turtle Research and conservation in the Southwestern Atlantic Ocean (SWA) in response to the urgent need to evaluate the impact generated on sea turtles by fisheries. Historically, sea turtle conservation efforts have focused almost exclusively on the protection of nesting beaches. Nevertheless, over the last decade, research has proved incidental mortality as a result of fishing activities to be one of the greatest threats to these animals. This type of interaction is not only problematic for turtles, but also generates financial losses for fishermen and businesses. In spite of the efforts that are currently underway, researchers still do not have a detailed understanding of the impact that bycatch produces on sea turtle populations in the SWA. We have a long way to go before its effects can be minimized. Further research is needed regarding the biology and ecology of the various turtle species as well as the effective application of mitigation measures. The life cycles of sea turtles are long and complex. Turtles occupy various ecosystems (nesting beaches, coastal, neritic and oceanic zones, as well as pelagic and demersal areas) throughout their lifetimes, transcending various Exclusive Economic Zones and International Waters. The five species that inhabit the SWA region perform vast feeding and reproductive migrations, traveling through areas where many different fishing fleets operate. Therefore, sea turtles in the SWA interact with virtually all fisheries. These circumstances make it necessary to carry out biological, fishing related and conservation studies on a regional level. The efficiency of the existing international and national legal instruments has yet to be determined, in terms of their effectiveness in protecting sea turtles. In some cases, legislation that is specifically related to the interaction between fisheries and turtles does exist, such as those laws requiring the mandatory use of turtle excluding devices (TEDs). There are also explicit bans on sea turtle capture. Nevertheless, none of these regulations prevent sea turtle bycatch. Although some regional legal instruments are needed, these and the existing legislation will only be effective if they are accompanied by a broader range of permanent education and control measures, to achieve the commitment of all the parties involved. The ecosystem approach is gaining popularity among fishery administration organizations. Research and conservation efforts should also be moving in that direction. A regional and international effort is required in order to compile information regarding the bycatch produced by the various types of fisheries and fleets operating in the area. The enormous increase in fishing pressure that these fleets are exerting in this area has not been accompanied by an increase in information regarding the bycatch of species that have no commercial value. Pelagic longlining is one of the fishing methods, which must be most closely monitored, due to the high levels of bycatch that it produces, as well its ample distribution throughout the region, and the high level of fishing effort that it accounts for. Coastal trawlers and gillnetters must also be considered critical players, because they too produce a large rate of bycatch. These are the three types of fisheries that are most broadly distributed throughout the region, accounting for the majority of the fishing effort. Most of the institutions that work toward sea turtle conservation in the area have only begun to address the issue of bycatch over the last decade. This timeframe is reflected in the scope and quantity of the available publications, as well as the progress of activities directed at mitigating this problem. All of the institutions that have been mentioned in this report have made the gathering of information regarding interaction between sea turtles and fisheries one of their top priorities. Some institutions are even developing working programs for monitoring fisheries and testing mitigation measures. Many of these institutions have managed to develop adequate relationships with fishermen, ship owners and administrators. Nevertheless, limited access to funding is an obstacle to the development and testing of mitigation measures. The SWA network, which is a very valuable instrument that was created in 2003, has allowed the region’s institutions and researchers to exchange information and share their experience, in addition to lending each other support in carrying out joint activities, thus strengthening sea turtle conservation efforts. The capacity demonstrated so far by the region’s researchers and institutions, testifies to their ability to continue to make progress in knowledge generation and tests of bycatch mitigation measures.

Description: Published

Description: Este documento, dirigido al sector pesquero, investigadores, conservacionistas y administradores de las pesquerías, surge como respuesta de investigadores pertenecientes al Grupo de Especialistas en Investigación y Conservación de Tortugas Marinas en el Atlántico Sud Occidental (ASO) a la urgente necesidad de evaluar el impacto de las pesquerías sobre las tortugas marinas. Históricamente, los esfuerzos referidos a la conservación de las tortugas marinas se han dirigido casi exclusivamente a proteger las playas de anidación. Sin embargo en la última década se ha podido comprobar que una de las mayores amenazas es la mortalidad incidental causada por las pesquerías. Esta interacción no implica únicamente un problema para las tortugas, sino que también genera pérdidas económicas para los pescadores y las empresas.

Description: This document, which is directed at the fishing sector, researchers, conservationists and fishery administrators, was developed by researchers who are members of the Specialists Group for Marine Turtle Research and Conservation in the Southwestern Atlantic Ocean (SWA) in response to the urgent need to evaluate the impact generated on sea turtles by fisheries. Historically, sea turtle conservation efforts have focused almost exclusively on the protection of nesting beaches. Nevertheless, over the last decade, research has proved incidental mortality as a result of fishing activities to be one of the greatest threats to these animals. This type of interaction is not only problematic for turtles, but also generates financial losses for fishermen and businesses.

Description: Cont. fotografías

Description: Published

Description: Sea Turtle, keeping

Description: This report describes a preliminary analysis of borehole seismic data to determine VLF/Sub-bottom Seismic Noise in the Atlantic and the preliminary results of finite difference modelling for a Cape Fear environment. Noise levels were not a simple function of depth and there are indications that noise levels may depend on local geology about a given receiver position and/or on clamping. Coherency of the noise was generally poor (〈0.8) and was independent of depth. There is no evidence for distinct polarizations or directionality of the noise. The lowest determined value for ambient noise power on the vertical component was 10-4 nm2/Hz in the frequency range from 5-50 Hz. The better clamped horizontal component had comparable power values. In conclusion, although the drill ship was on the site and drill pipe was in the hole, analysis of the data for a large number of windows can provide meaningful upper bounds on the ambient noise levels in the upper crust.

Description: Prepared for the Naval Ocean Research and Development Activity as the final report for Contract Purchase Order No. N62306-86-l4-7589

Description: "Baroclinic instability as the largest scale of motion participating in the cross frontal oceanic transport process" was the theme of the 25th summer program at G.F.D. Killworth (Cambridge University) reviewed classical baroclinic instability theory, leading up to recent studies in which the distinctive structure of an ocean front is included. Finite amplitude baroclinic instability in the classical model was discussed by Pedlosky (WHOI). Laboratory experiments on baroclinic frontal theory was surveyed by Griffiths (Australian National University). The different kinds of oceanic fronts were surveyed by Joyce (WHOI), and additional observations were supplied by several of the invited staff. The smallest scales of motion relevant to the cross-frontal transfer problem were discussed from the oceanic standpoint by Osborn (Naval Postgraduate School) and from the point of view of laboratory experiments by Ruddick (Dalhousie University), among others.

Description: Office of Naval Research under Contract NO0014 -82-G-00 79 and the National Science Foundation under Grant MCS-82-00450. Partial support ackmowledged from the Office of Naval Research Contract N00014-76-C-0197; NR 083-400.

Description: The first year of the New England Regional Fisheries Management Council has been marked by its experimental aura. Neither the Council nor the various sectors (representatives of the Federal and State agencies, members of the fishing industry, the public at large) were clear as to exactly what they were to do and how they were to do it--except in the broadest, most flexible (ambiguous?) terms. This created certain operational difficulties, and confusion for those whose livelihood was affected by the Council's operation. This latter group, particularly the fishermen, knew little of what went on, save in terms of the 'public facet of the Council--i.e., that portion of the Council's performance which occurred during the monthly meetings which were open to the public and which, supposedly, received public input at that time. This study defines that public face, deliberately avoiding the presentation of any data which was not accessible to the average audience participant, in an attempt to present some of the behavior which all participants demonstrated and which generated responses and reactions on the part of the other sectors. It uses standard anthropological techniques of data gathering and analysis to show the degree to which impression management on the part of all the actors operated in a systematic fashion to produce action, reaction, and counter-action. Particularly emphasized is the communication aspects.

Description: Prepared with funds from the Pew Memorial Trust and by the Department of Commerce, NOAA Office of Sea Grant under Grant #04-7-158-44104, and the Marine Policy and Ocean Management Program of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution; and by sabbatical funding from the State University of New York.

Description: Fish and fishermen appear to be in a serious decline in New England. The haddock are overfished, inshore herring stocks are depleted, yellowtail flounder and lobster are scarce. The popular image is of grizzled fishermen, their boats chipped, scarred, old-fashioned hulks of wood tied up two and three abreast along the rotting wharves and piers of New England's depressed port towns. In this research project, we wanted to determine the state of the New England fishing industry and to propose acceptable methods for the management of the fishery. During our early discussions with the fishing industry people, we mentioned that we were interested in limited effort programs as they might be applied to New England fishermen. We carefully, and probably tediously, explained the "theory of limited effort" and we were generally thought to be daft. We were told we had things backwards--that the fishing industry needed more fish, more men, more boats - and that the way to accomplish this was to get a 200-mile fishing limit and kick the foreigners out. One of these wishes has come true - in the spring of 1976, P.L. 94-265 established a 200-mile fishing zone off the United States, with regional management councils to make management plans and allocate the resources first to United States fishermen, with surpluses to foreign fishermen.

Description: Prepared with funds from the Pew Memorial Trust and by the Department of Commerce, NOAA Office of Sea Grant under Grant #04-5-158-8 and Grant #04-6-158-44106, and the Institution's Marine Policy and Ocean Management Program.

Description: Published

Description: From 1986 to 1991, observers on board tuna purse-seiners based in Seychelles allow analysis of data such as oceanographic parameters, aspects of tuna schools and their associated sightings, as well as fishing characteristics (success rate, catches, cpue, species composition, duration of fishing sets). Performances of the four concerned countries (France, Spain, Japan, USSR) are compared.

Description: Published

Description: Published

Description: Seychelles is composed of over 100 islands with a land area of approximately 455 km², centred close to 4°30'S and 55°30'E. The combined coastline is approximately 600 km long, the oceanic shelf totals about 50 000 km² and the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is over 1 370 000 km². The total population (1994 census) stands at just under 74 000. in 1994, the population registered a growth rate of 2.2%. The GDP (1994) was SR 2373.8 million, fisheries representing 4.8% of this sum. Licensing agreements for foreign fishing activities provided a yearly revenue of SR8 million. Port Victoria is seen as a prime centre for tuna fishing operations in the Indian Ocean. In the artisanal fishery just under 900 persons are working. The largest contributor to catch by vessel type are the traditional whaler vessels representing 47.8% of the total catch. Over 66.3% of the catch is by the handline method. Carangidae representing 24% and Lutjanidae 19% of total landings. There are six specific objectives to the fisheries sector policy, which aims as resource development and maximisation of potential benefits. Nearshore fishery resources are considered to be heavily exploited, however opportunities exist around the distant islands and in deeper waters off the Mahe plateau shelf. Aquaculture of molluscs and prawns is being developed and carried out. The main constraints to development are seen as the lack of skilled manpower and foreign exchange.

Description: Published

Description: This journal is published by NIOF, Alexandria, Egypt

Description: Spatial and temporal variability in the saprophytic (SB) and salt tolerant saprophytic (STSB) bacterial counts as well as total coliforms (TC), E. coli (EC) and fecal streptococci (FS) were investigated in the Egyptian surface coastal waters of Aqaba and Suez Gulfs as well as Red Sea. A total of 200 samples collected from 40 sites during January, March, May, July and September 2002 were investigated. Hydrographical parameters including water temperature (oC), salinity (S%o), dissolved oxygen (DO) and pH were also measured. According to the European and Egyptian current standards, out of 200 samples analyzed during 2002, 183 samples (91.5%) were accepted for marine recreational purposes. The obtained results indicated that water quality of the investigated coastal areas was generally affected by sewage disposal and (or) other anthropic influences. However in bathing and recreational areas, the water quality was mainly affected by the excessive human presence i.e. tourists-visitors and their recreational activities. In general, the final counts of all the investigated bacterial groups were found to be in good correlation with each other.

Description: NIOF

Description: Published

Description: NIOF, Alexandria, Egypt

Description: The present study deals with the physical and chemical characteristics of the water of Abu Za'baal Ponds. Determination of physical parameters (air and water temperatures, transparency, electrical conductivity, salinity, total solids, total dissolved solids and total suspended solids) and chemical parameters (pH, DO, BOD, COD, HCO3 -, CO3 --, Cl- , SO4 --,Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, K+, NO2-, NO3-, NH3, PO4--, TP and SiO2-) were carried out to identify the nature and quality of the water of Abu Za'baal Ponds. The present results reveal that the values of most physical and chemical parameters were higher than those of freshwater, lower than those of saline water and in the same range of the brackishwater. Thus, the water of Abu Za'baal Ponds can be classified as brackishwater.

Description: National Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries- Alexandria, Egypt

Description: Published

Description: Shark species, both oceanic and coastal, are very common to Seychelle waters. In the past, however, the demand for shark and shark products has always been very erratic. The ever-increasing international concern for the species and potential conflicts between fishermen and conservation groups has highlighted the issue. In the Seychelles, the shark are caught by gillnets in inshore waters and by hook-and-line and purse seine offshore. Until very recently there were no regulations controlling the shark fishery, but, partly in response to initiatives by a local conservation group, fishing for sharks with nets has been banned since 1 August 1998. A review is provided of the present situation of the fishery whilst underscoring the difficulties of formulating a Management Plan based on the limited information available. The text of Chapter 82 of the Fisheries Act of 1986 is included as an appendix to the document.

Description: Published

Description: This report reviews the spiny lobster fishery on the Mahe Plateau during the 1994 - 1995 fishing season. Following the recommendations made after the 1992 fishing season, the fishery was reopened in 1993 for two months, November and December. The monitoring programme set up in 1992 was continued to gather more information on the spiny lobster stocks so as to improve the management of this resource around the Mahe Plateau. A total of 33 licenses were issued (compared to 28 in 1993); 25 on Mahe, 2 on Praslin and 6 on La Digue. A licensed fishing unit comprised, on average, of three men. Snorkelling was used by 27 fishing units as the only catching method, 3 fishing units used traps only whilst 3 fishing units combined snorkelling with the use of traps. Over the three month open season a total of 4.1 tonnes of spiny lobsters were estimated to have been landed compared to 4.2 tonnes in 1993, most landings were on Mahe (3.03 tonnes) A catch of 0.9 tonnes was landed in November, 1.2 tonnes landed in December and 2.0 tonnes landed in January. Altogether 159 trips were undertaken equivalent to 477 man-trips for the season with 28 trips in November, 63 trips in December and 68 trips in January. The snorkelling and trap capture methods represented 70.2% and 29.8% of the catch respectively. The catch per unit of effort (CPUE) for November through January was: -36 kg/trip (November), -39 kg/trip (December), -28.5 kg/trip (January). Three main species were targeted: Panulirus penicillatus (Homard Grosse Tete), Panulirus longipes (Homard Rouge), Panulirus versicolor (Homard Vert). The catch composition by fishing method was: a) Snorkellling: Homard Grosse Tete : 80.4% Homard Rouge : 19.2% Homard Vert : 0.4% b) Trap: Homard Grosse Tete : 100%

Description: Published

Description: This journal is published by the NIOF, Egypt

Description: Lake Manzalah; the largest delta Lake in Egypt represents a dynamic system that has been undergoing continuous and pronounced changes since long times. In the last year’s this Lake faced drastic problems that retarded its environmental and fisheries development; the most serious one is the discharge of waste water. It is attempted in the present study to investigate the chemical characters of Lake Manzalah water during 2001-2002. Water temperature ranged from an average of 12.35oC in January and 29.14oC in July. Dissolved Oxygen, pH and total dissolved solids were found in ranges optimum for the living of marine and freshwater fish species. The average concentrations of nutrients lied in the following ranges: 1.24 to 4.89 μmol PO4 -3 l-1 , 5.08 to 28.73 μmol SiO4 -2 l-1 and 1.81 to 17.7 μ_mol NO3-1 l-1 The concentrations of phosphorus and nitrogen compounds were found to be relatively higher at the southern regions of the Lake near to the outlets of the drains.

Description: NIOF

Description: Published

Description: The present report reviews the spiny lobster fishery on the Mahe Plateau for the 2001/2002 fishing season. The monitoring programme, set up in 1992, was continued this season to collect more information on the spiny lobster stock in order to improve and maintain proper management of this resource around the Mahe Plateau. For the 2001/2002 lobster fishing season, a total of 40 licenses were issued namely twenty seven on Mahe, five on Praslin and eight on La Digue. Similar to previous seasons, the most frequently used lobster fishing technique was snorkelling which involved 32 fishing units, whilst only four units used the trap method and one used both snorkelling and trap. For this three-month fishing season, a total of 5.5 tonnes of spiny lobsters were estimated to have been landed compared to 10.2 tonnes in 2000-2001 fishing season. Most landings were on Mahe, which accounted for 58.44 % of the total catch (3.214 tonnes) followed by Praslin with 13.89% (0.77 tonnes). Both La Digue and Silhouette groups had landings of 0.5 tonnes each. The month of November accounted for 1.36 tonnes, while 3.37 tonnes was landed in December and 0.81 tonnes in January. A total of 350 trips were undertaken equivalent to 803 man-trips for the season with 107 trips in November, 193 trips in December and 50 trips in January. The snorkelling and trap capture methods represented 96% and 4% of the total catch respectively. The catch rates represented by catch per unit effort(CPUE) throughout the season were as follows: - 12.75 kg/trip(November) - 17.49 kg/trip (December) - 16.35 kg/trip January). The main species targeted were: Homard Grosse Tete (Panuliruspenidilatus) Homard Rouge (Panulirus longipes) Homard Vert (Panulirus versicolor). The catch composition by fishing method was as follows: a.) Snorkelling: b.)Trap: Homard Grosse Tete: 65.68% Homard Grosse Tete: 14.21% Homard Rouge: 26.83% Homard Rouge: 85.79% Homard Vert: 7.07%

Description: Published

Description: Published

Description: Industrial tuna fishing

Description: Forty oyster spat collector bags were submerged at two different sites near Mahe island fofr a period between 3.2 and 11 months. Strong currents in the south-east monsoon period resulted in a few bags lying in the sand which was detrimental to spat settlement. The mean settlement rate was calculated at 15.6 oysters per bag, however 71_310= of the bags had more than 10 oysters per bag. Considering only those bags, the settlement averaged at 27 oysters per bag. The sizes of oysters in collector bags after different soaking times, indicate that growth rate in the first few months is higher than on French Polynesia. Growth rates of oysters maintained in a cage indicated an average increase of 21.7 mm in five months, between the size of 25.9 mm and 47.76 mm. The observed mortality over the same period was 29.2_310=. Oyster spat settlement did occur all year around, indicating that spawning also occurs all through the year. Pearlculture in Seychelles is technically feasible and pearl farms will depend,for their regular supply of oysters, on collecting methods of oyster spat produced by natural stocks. Natural oyster beds are reported to be limited in Seychelles and these beds are presently exploited for the supply of the artisanal craft industry and the jewellery industry. Suitable sites for farming operations, on the granitic and on the outer coraline islands, are limited. In view of these limitations, priority has to be given to the assessment of the actual status of oyster beds and then implement neccessary of the actual measures where needed. The continuation of the Sfa training and research program regarding optimum sites, settlement rates, growth rates and other biological information will be crucial for the future development of the industry.The successful development of the pearl oyster industry in Seychelles, will largely depend on the choice of adequate management options, concerning the resource as well as the potential commercial ventures. A guideline on pearlculture development has been produced to support future initiative in this field.

Description: Published

Description: Fishing performances of four different types of boats (pirogues, outboard, whalers, schooners) are studied through the analysis of the temporal evolution, between July 1985 and June 1988, for four parameters: numbers of active fishing boats,- total number of fishing trips, - average number of trips/boat, - average trip duration. The trends from these analysis reveals that the boats involved in the handline fishery in seychelles have evolved considerably. These changes must be taken into consideration in the case of an eventual reorganisation of the fleet.

Description: Published

Description: The 1991 Acoustic Surface Reverberation Experiment (ASREX 91) took place in November and December off the coast of British Columbia. As part of this experiment, three moorings were deployed to characterize the environmental background. The moorings consisted of a meteorological/oceanographic mooring designed to measure surface meteorology, current and temperature in the upper 120 meters, and nondirectional wave parameters and two wave moorings which were instrumented with pitch-roll buoys to characterize the directional wave spectrum. This report presents results from these three moorings. The conditions seen during the experiment were extremely rough, with wind speeds at 3.4m above the water surface reaching a maximum of 22 m/s and wave heights reaching a maximum of over 10 meters. The air-sea flux of heat was strongly cooling, and the mixed layer deepened over the course of the experiment from approximately 40 to approximately 70 meters. Spectra of the temperature showed a strong semidiurnal tidal signal associated with temperature excursions of several degrees C. The velocity signal showed strong inertial oscilations with amplitudes of 30-50 cm/s. Weaker low-frequency and semidiurnal tidal signals were also seen. The waves were very strong with significant wave heights of 5-6 meters persisting for up to 2 weeks at a time. Waves were generally out of the south or the west.

Description: Funding was provided by the Ocean Acoustics Program (Code 324OA) of the Office of Naval Research under contract N00014-91-J-1891.

Description: The Synoptic Ocean Prediction Experiment (SYNOP) was an ambitious, multi-faceted program focused on the dynamics and predictailty of the Gulf Stream and its recirculations. The moored array component contained the arrays; one just downstream of Cape Hatteras (the "Inlet Array"), one near 68°W (the SYNOP "Central Array") and one near 55°W ("SYNOP East") to which this report is addessed. There were two settings of the SYNOP East array, the first, from fall 1987 to summer 1989, contained 42 current meters on 13 moorings straddling the mean axis of the Stream and extending north and south into the two recirculations. The second extended the southernmost six moorings for an additional two years until summer 1991. Performance was excellent and all instruments but one were recovered.

Description: Funding was provided by Office of Naval Research under Contract No. N00014-85-C-0001 and National Science Foundation under Grant No. OCE86-08258.

Description: Published

Description: Published

Description: Published

Description: Published

Description: The Third Acoustic Surface Reverberation Experiment (AS REX III) took place from December 1993 to March 1994 at Site L (34°N, 70°W) in the mid-Atlantic. As part of this experiment, two moorings were deployed to measure the environmental background. A meteorological and oceanographic mooring was deployed to characterize the surface wind stress, buoyancy flux, and the current and temperature structure over the top 500 meters. A Seatex Wavescan buoy was deployed to characterize the directional wave spectrum. This report presents results from these moorings. Wind speeds up to 25 m/s were seen, with significant heat losses (up to 1050 W/m2) when cold continental air moved out over the warm Atlantic. The wave heights ranged up to 8 m, with significant wave heights of several meters persisting for relatively long periods. Wave height and period, nondirectional spectra, directional spectra and a typology of wave events are presented and related to surface forcing.

Description: Funding was provided by the Office of Naval Research through Grant No. NOOOl4-91-J-1891.

Description: An array of moorings at four sites at a mid-shelf location in the mid-Atlantic Bight was deployed for a period of 10 months beginning in August 1996 as part of the Coastal Mixing and Optics Experiment (CMO), funded by the Office of Naval Research (ONR). The purpose of this array is to gather information to help identify and understand the vertical mixing processes influencing the evolution of the stratification over the shelf. The observations from this moored array will be used to investigate changes in the stratification in response to atmospheric forcing, surface gravity wave variabilty, surface and bottom boundary layer mixing, current shear, internal waves, and advection. This report describes the primary mooring deployments carried out by the Upper Ocean Processes (UOP) Group on the R/V Oceanus, sailing out of Woods Hole during July, August, and September of 1996.

Description: Funding was provided by the Office of Naval Research through Grant No. N00014-95-1-0339.

Description: The Deep Basin Experiment (DBE) is an international effort and a part of the World Ocean Circulation Experiment with the principal objective of improving our knowledge of the subthermocline circulation. The DBE fieldwork is focussed on the Brazil Basin and this report is concerned with a moored array situated along its southern boundary which was installed in early 1991 to measure the inflow and outflow to the Basin and to investigate the Brazil Current near 30S. This moored array was a joint undertaking by the Institut für Meereskunde of the University of Kiel and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Moorings were deployed on Meteor Cruise 15, leg 1 and retrieved on Meteor cruise 22, legs 3 and 4. A total of 57 conventional current meters and two Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers were set on 13 moorings with some concentration within the Brazil Current and the Vema Channel. CTDs were taken at each mooring site as well as in between. Some of the recovered instruments were reset in the Hunter Channel, a suspected additional connection between the Argentine Basin and the Brazil Basin. A later report will summarize this data after it is recovered in May 1994.

Description: Funding was provided by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (Si 111/38-1, Si 111/39-1) the Bundesministerium für Forschung und Technologie (03F0535A, 03F0050D) and the National Science Foundation under Grant OCE-9004396.

Description: A Severe Environment Surface Mooring (SESMOOR) was designed to make long term meteorological and near surface oceanographic measurements in areas where harsh envionmental conditions prevail. SESMOOR was deployed in the North Atlantic Ocean approximately 300 km southeast of Halifax, Nova Scotia for 141 days during the winter of 1988-89. Meterological data were acquired from two Vector Averaging Wind Recorders (VAWR) located on top of a specially designed buoy mast and included air temperature, relative humidity, barometric pressure, wind velocity, solar and longwave radiation. Sea surface temperature was also acquired by the VAWR. Current velocities and sea temperatures were obtained from two Vector Measuring Current Meters (VMCM) at 20 and 50 meters below the sea surface. This report discusses instrument performance, data quality, pre-and post-deployment calibrations, data telemetry, data processing procedures. This report also presents the data in a variety of displays.

Description: Funding was provided by the Office of Naval Research under Contract No. N00014-84-C-0134, NR 083-400 and Grant No. N00014-90-J-1423.

Description: Published

Description: This is the first volume of a "final report" that summarizes, often in a speculative vein, what I have learned over the past 35 years or so about large-scale, low-frequency ocean currents, primarily with support from the Office of Naval Research (ONR). I was also fortunate to have been partially supported by the National Science Foundation and, during the preparation of this report, by the Clark Foundation. This report is meant to be an informal, occasionally anecdotal, state-of-the-art summary account of the World Ocean Circulation (WOC). Seemingly simple questions about how ocean currents behave, such as where various brands of sea water are coming from and going to, have been exciting and difficult research topics for many years. This report is not remotely about "all" of the WOC, it is simply a set of comments about what I have looked into. I believe that the results in this report, although presented in a personal way, are consistent with community wisdom. The report is intended to be readable by non-specialists who have a basic scientific/technical background, especially in other oceanographic areas or meteorology or physics or the geophysical disciplines, not just by specialists in physical oceanography. Anyone wishing to get spun up on the observational basis for the WOC could use this report and associated reference lists as a starting point. Volume I concentrates on the North Atlantic Ocean although there is preliminary discussion of global features. Highlights of this global summary are a new type of composite schematic picture of the World Ocean Circulation in its "upper layers" (Figure I-I) and new summaries (Figures 1-12, 21,91) of the global "thermohaline" circulation.

Description: Funding was provided by the Office of Naval Research, Grant Nos. N00014-89-J-1039 and N00014-95-1-0356, and the Clark Foundation.

Description: As part of the Semaphore Experiment four Meddies (Mediterranean Water Eddies) were discovered in the Canary Basin and tracked with freely drifting RAFOS floats. An additional Meddy was discovered off Lisbon by Pingree (1995) and also tracked with RAFOS floats. One large and energetic Meddy, discovered 1700 km west of Cape St. Vincent, Portugal, set a distance and speed record as it translated another 1700 km southwestward at 3.9 cm/sec during the 1.5 years. This Meddy traveled 57% of the distance from Cape St. Vincent toward the spot McDowell and Rossby (1978) found a possible Meddy north of the Dominican Republic. Four Meddies collided with tall seamounts which seemed to disrupt the normal swirl velocity perhaps fatally in three cases. One Meddy appeared to bifurcate when it collided with seamounts. This report describes the float trajectories in the Meddies and summarizes the main results.

Description: Funding was provided by the National Science Foundation under contract number OCE 93-01234.

Description: Two surface moorings were recovered during R/V Melville cruise PACS03MV in the eastern equatorial Pacific as part of the Pan American Climate Study (PACS). PACS is a NOAA-funded study with the goal of investigating links between sea-surface temperature variability in the tropical oceans near the Americas and climate over the American continents. The two moorings were deployed near 125°W, spanning the strong meridional sea-surface temperature gradient associated with the cold tongue south of the equator and the warmer ocean north of the equator, near the northernmost, summer location of the Inter-tropical Convergence Zone. The moored array was deployed to improve the understanding of air-sea fluxes and of the processes that control the evolution of the sea surface temperature field in the region. Two surface mooring, located at 3°S, 125°W and 10°N, 125°W, belonging to the Upper Ocean Proccess (UOP) Group at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), were recovered after being on station for eight months. This was the second setting of the two moorings that had been redeployed from the University of Washington's R/V Thomas Thompson cruise number 73. The buoys of the two WHOI moorings were each equipped with meteorological instrumentation, including a Vector Averaging Wind Recorder (VAWR), and an Improved METeorological (IMET) system. The WHOI moorings also carried Vector Measuring Current Meters, single point temperature recorders, and conductivity and temperature recorders located in the upper 200 meters of the mooring line. In addition to the instrumentation noted above, a variety of other instruments, including an acoustic current meter, acoustic doppler meters, bio-optical instrument packages and an acoustic rain gauge, were deployed during the PACS field program.

Description: Funding was provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration under contract number NA66GPO130.

Description: To investigate vertical mixing processes influencing the evolution of the stratification over continental shelves a moored array was deployed on the New England shelf from August 1996 to June 1997 as part of the Office of Naval Research's Coastal Mixing and Optics program. The array consisted of four mid-shelf sites instrumented to measure oceanic (currents, temperature, salinity, pressure, and surface gravity wave spectra) and meteorological (winds, surface heat flux, precipitation) variables. This report presents a description of the moored array, a summary of the data processing, and statistics and time-series plots summarizing the data. A report on the mooring recovery cruise and a summary of shipboard CTD surveys taken during the mooring deployment are also included.

Description: Funding was provided by the Office of Naval Research under Contract No. N00014-95-1-0339.

Description: Three surface moorings were recovered and redeployed during R/V Thomas Thompson cruise number 73 in the eastern equatorial Pacific as pan of the Pan American Climate Study (PACS). PACS is a NOAA-funded study with the goal of investigating links between sea-surface temperature variability in the tropical oceans near the Americas and climate over the American continents. The three moorings were deployed near 125°W, spanning the strong meridional sea-surface temperature gradient associated with the cold tongue south of the equator and the warmer ocean north of the equator, near the northernmost, summer location of the Intertopical Convergence Zone. The moored array was deployed to improve the understanding of air-sea fluxes and of the processes that control the evolution of the sea surface temperature field in the region. Two surface moorings, located at 3°S, 125°W and lO°N, 125°W, belonging to the Upper Ocean Processes (UOP) Group at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), were recovered after being on station for eight months and redeployed. Two eight-month deployments were planned. A third mooring deployed at the equator and 128°W by the Ocean Circulation Group at the University of South Florida (USF) was also recovered and redeployed. The USF mooring, unfortunately, had to be recovered immediately following redeployment due to a problem with the buoy and instrumentation. The buoys of the two WHOI moorings were each equipped with meteorological instrumentation, including a Vector Averaging Wind Recorder (VAWR), and an Improved Meteorological (IMET) system. The WHOI moorings also carried Vector Measuring Current Meters, single point temperature recorders, and conductivity and temperature recorders located in the upper 200 meters of the mooring line. In addition to the instrumentation noted above, a variety of other instruments, including an acoustic current meter, acoustic doppler current meters, bio-optical instrument packages and an acoustic rain gauge, were deployed during the PACS field program. The USF mooring had an IMET system on the surface buoy and for oceanographic instrumentation, two RD Instruments acoustic doppler current profilers (ADCPs), single-point temperature recorders, and conductivity and temperature recorders. Conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) profiles were made at each mooring site and during the transit between mooring locations. This report describes, in a general manner, the work that took place during R/V Thomas Thompson cruise number 73. A description of the WHOI moored array and instrumentation is provided. Details of the mooring designs and preliminary data from the CTD profies are included.

Description: Funding was provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration under Contract No. NA66GPO130.

Description: During May and June 2000, an intercomparison was made of buoy meteorological systems from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL), and the Japanese Marine Science and Technology Center (JAMSTEC). Two WHOI systems mounted on a 3 m discus buoy, two PMEL systems mounted on separate buoy tower tops and one JAMSTEC system mounted on a wooden platform were lined parallel to, and 25 m from Nantucket Sound in Massachusetts. All systems used R. M. Young propeller anemometers, Rotronic relative humidity and air temperature sensors and Eppley short-wave radiation sensors. The PMEL and WHOI systems used R. M.Young self-siphoning rain gauges, while the JAMSTEC system used a Scientific Technology ORG-115 optical rain gauge. The PMEL and WHOI systems included an Eppley PIR long-wave sensor, while the JAMSTEC had no longwave sensor. The WHOI system used an AIR DB-1A barometric pressure sensor. PMEL and JAMSTEC systems used Paroscientific Digiquartz sensors. The Geophysical Instruments and Measurements Group (GIM) from Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) installed two Portable Radiation Package (PRP) systems that include Eppley short-wave and long-wave sensors on a platform near the site. It was apparent from the data that for most of the sensors, the correlation between data sets was better than the absolute agreement between them. The conclusions made were that the sensors and associated electronics from the three different laboratories performed comparably.

Description: Funding was provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration under Grant Number NA96GPO429.

Description: Three surface moorings were deployed in the eastern equatorial Pacifc from the R/V Roger Revelle as part of the Pan American Climate Study (PACS). PACS is a NOAA-funded study with the goal of investigating links between sea surface temperature varabilty in the tropical oceans near the Americas and climate over the American continents. The three moorings were deployed near 125°W, spanning the strong meridional sea surface temperature gradient associated with the cold tongue south of the equator and the warmer ocean north of the equator, near the northernmost, summer location of the Intertropical Convergence Zone. The mooring deployment was done to improve understading of the air-sea fluxes and of the processes that control the evolution of the sea surface temperature field in the region. Two surface moorings of the Upper Ocean Processes Group at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) were deployed-one at 3°S, 125°W and the other at lO°N, 125°W. One mooring from the Ocean Circulation Group (R. Weisberg) at the University of South Florida (USP) was deployed on the equator at 128°W. The buoys of the two WHOI moorings were each equipped with meteorological instrmentation, including a Vector Averaging Wind Recorder, and an Improved Meteorological (IMET) system. The WHOI moorings also carried Vector Measurng Current Meters, single-point temperature recorders, and conductivity and temperature recorders located in the upper 200 meters of the mooring line. In addition to the instrumentation noted above, a variety of other instruments, including an acoustic current meter, acoustic doppler current meters, bio-optical instrument packages and an acoustic rain gauge, were deployed during the PACS field program. The USF mooring had an IMET system on the surface buoy and for oceanographic instrumentation, two RD Instruments acoustic doppler current profilers, single-point temperature recorders, and conductivity and temperature recorders. Conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) profiles were made at each mooring site and during the transit between mooring locations. This report describes, in a general manner, the work that took place durig the Genesis 4 cruise aboard the R/V Roger Revelle. The three surface moorings deployed during this cruise will be recovered and re-deployed after approximately nine months, with a final recovery planned for 17 months after the first setting. Details of the mooring designs and preliminary data from the CT profies are included.

Description: Funding was provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration under Contract No. NA66GP0130.

Description: This is the second and final volume of a report that describes some of my investigations over the last 35 years or so into low-frequency ocean current structures, a topic which I will call the World Ocean Circulation (WOC). The material presented constitutes my final report to the Office of Naval Research, and their support over the years is deeply appreciated. I was also fortunate to have been partially supported by the National Science Foundation during my career and, for some of the preparation of this report, by the Clark Foundation. Volume I was focused on the North Atlantic Ocean, after a global scale summary. This volume (II) will consider first the Pacific and Indian Oceans, concentrating on interbasin circulations, meridional cells, and mesoscale eddy fields. Then, there is an exceptionaly brief discussion of the Southern Ocean(s) for background only, followed by a global summary. Lately, I have worked intensely on intergyre and interbasin exchanges, including an inter-comparison of some of the properties of the eddy field in the World's Oceans (Schmitz, W.J., Jr., Reo. Geophys.,33,151-173,1995; J. Geophys. Res., 101,16,259-16,271,1996). Volume II contains not only an update of the global picture, but also new representations of the transport structure of various components of the meridional overturning cells for each ocean. In summary, several similarties as well as dissimilarities between different oceans relative to both their general circulation and their mesoscale eddy field are shown to be associated with interbasin exchanges. This report is meant to be an informal, occasionaly anecdotal, state-of-the-art summary account of the World Ocean Circulation. Seemingly simple questions about how ocean currents behave, such as where various brands of sea water are coming from and going to, have been exciting research topics for many years. This report is not remotely about "all" of the WOC, it is simply a set of comments about what I have looked into during the preparation of this document. I do believe that the results in this report, although presented in a personal way, are consistent with community wisdom. The document is intended to be readable by non-specialists who have a basic scientifc/technical background, especially in other oceanographic areas or meteorology or the geophysical disciplines, not only by specialists in physical oceanography.

Description: Funding was provided by the Office of Naval Research, Grant Nos. NO0014-89-J-I039 and N00014-95-1-0356, and the Clark Foundation.

Description: This data report summarzes 45 surface drifter trajectories collected between November 1998 and June 2000 as part of the North Brazil Current (NBC) Rings Experiment. NBC rings have been proposed as one of several important mechanisms for the transport of South Atlantic upper-ocean water across the equatorial-tropical gyre boundary and into the North Atlantic subtropical gyre. Such transport is required to complete the meridional overturning cell in the Atlantic forced by the high-latitude production and southward export of North Atlantic Deep Water. The goal of this program is to obtain, for the first time, comprehensive observations of the NBC retroflection, the NBC ring formation process, and the physical structure and properties of NBC rings as they translate northwestward along the low-latitude western boundary. A total of 45 drifters were deployed. Twenty-four of these looped anticyclonically within the five rings identified during this experiment. Seven of the looping ring drifters entered the Caribbean, while the rest moved northward along the eastern flank of the Lesser Antiles.

Description: Funding was provided by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. OCE-9729765.

Description: Contents: Preface 1. Introduction 2. Linear Regression 3. Discretizing Continuous Inverse Problems 4. Rank Deficiency and Ill-Conditioning 5. Tikhonov Regularization 6. Iterative Methods 7. Other Regularization Techniques 8. Fourier Techniques 9. Nonlinear Regression 10. Nonlinear Inverse Problems 11. Bayesian Methods Appendix A: Review of Linear Algebra Appendix B: Review of Probability and Statistics Appendix C: Glossary of Notation; Bibliography; Index It is accompanied by a Web site that contains Matlab code corresponding to all examples. Audience: Students and professionals in Astrophysics, Applied Mathematics, Atmospheric Science, Geologiocal Engineering, Geophysics, Hydrology, Oceanography and related fields.