New Technology for basin wide monitoring: GLIDERS

1. New Technology for basin wide monitoring: GLIDERS Pierre Testor & Uwe Send (WP5 leader) Institut für Meereskunde (University of Kiel, Germany) MFSTEP Partner 7 Deliverables D1-D7

2. Our role (WP5) : Preliminary studies for application of Gliders Operation/analysis/assessment/data dissemination WP14 (Loïc Petit de la Villeon, Ifremer) : gliders data coordinator WP15 (Nadia Pinardi, INGV) : committee, meetings, communication plan, data products, dissemination policy, end-user involvement

3. Webb Research Corporation (Falmouth, MA) Underwater Flight University of Washington (Seattle, WS) Control of : • buoyancy • like profiling floats • ascent/descent angle & direction • effect on Roll & Pitch by moving mass center position

4. Vertical speeds ~5 cm/s Horizontal speeds of ~20-30 cm/s In situ measurements, transfer of data by satellite

5. Typical use on a section of 300 km 8-10 km 1000 m 15 days to cover the section 40 up & down profiles 12-14 autonomous repetitions of the section in 6-7 months Opportunity to pilot the glider with two-ways communication system deployment and recovery via a small boat from a local support base

6. S T° (U,V) Florida Webb Res. glider data

7. UW glider data S T° O2 US Washington state Fluorescence W Optical backscatter

8. Programmable to cover any section required • Potential to collect multidisciplinary data • Independent of operating ships • Unattended operation for extended periods • Can be serviced with small boats by local operators

9. Suitable for a basin with complicated bathymetry • Scales of Mediterranean are just right for glider-operated section • Naturally provides data in real time • - Can be reprogrammed remotely, to respond to events, to meet vessels or to be replaced in case of failure/sensor drift To be tested, explored and compared to other elements of an observing system

10. General objectives of WP5 Explore the capabilities of gliders by operating one real-time continuous glider repeat-section feeding the overall system 1/Evaluate and choose which of the available gliders prototype should/could be used 2/Determine the optimal application, capabilities and mission parameters in the MFSTEP application 3/Develop a real-time data dissemination system for glider data 4/Obtain data from the unattended glider repeat transects along one section in the Mediterranean 5/Disseminate real-time data to the community and to the forecasting system during the TOP 6/Analyze the data and assess the value of gliders 7/Establish a European capability for operating gliders

11. Methods local support bases C B VOS XBT network A GLIDER : - Basin monitoring - Strait monitoring A: 800 km = 40 days / 100 up&down profiles B: 200 km = 10 days / 20 up&down profiles C: 400 km = 20 days / 50 up&down profiles

12. Planning Pre - TOP TOP Post - TOP

13. TASK 5100 : Months 1- 6 study of the optimal type application capabilities / mission parameters • UW glider • Scripps glider • Webb Res. Powered Glider • coastal/thermal • powered battery, • max depth : 1000 m • T, S & currents - speed - descent/ascent angle - max depth - sampling intensity - time spent at surface - two-way communication options - scientific objectives / observations needed - bathymetry and expected currents - capabilities and endurance of the glider - location of land base - small-ship access to part of gliders tracks for comparison measurements

14. TASK 5200 : Months 6-18 Purchase, test, and preparation of one glider Fall 2003 : Webb’s during testing, for learning the useage and programming etc… Winter 2003 : glider in Kiel for preparation TASK 5300 : Months 6-18 Development of the real-time data dissemination system Telemetry system (2-way communication) : Orbcomm/Globalstar/Iridium Automatic routines Convert raw to physical data Checks for consistency and data quality Data path : Glider - operator - ADDC (WP14)

15. TASK 5410 : Months 19-24 Preparation, deployment and operation during the TOP - Launching with boats from the local support base (CNR – IST) - Unattended operation - Measures of T°, S, currents TASK 5500 : Months 19-24 Dissemination of real-time data • - Proper functioning of the entire data stream • Towards the forecasting structure in the same way as XBTs and other data sets

16. TASK 5600 : Months 18-36 Analysis and interpretation of the data collected 5620: technical analysis (performance, data return/quality, telemetry statistics, endurance, speed) 5610: physical analysis (new insights of upper and intermediate circulations in the Ionian basin)

17. Circulation of Surface Waters 1987 & 1991 Malanotte-Rizzoli et al. (1997, 1999) LSW ISW ASW AW AW ISW LSW ISW AW ASW In 1991, strong 3 lobes anticyclonic eddy blocking input of AW in the Levantine basin

18. Alongslope circulation • High mesoscale activity • No mid-basin jets • Northern branch : interranual • - Pelops, Iera-Petra gyres • detachments : • not permanent features May also affect intermediate waters

19. Lybian Eddies formation Alongslope current instabilities Hamad et al. (2002)

20. Alongslope circulation • High mesoscale activity • No mid-basin jets • Northern branch : interranual • - Pelops, Iera-Petra gyres • detachments : • not permanent features May also affect intermediate waters

21. Circulation of Intermediate Waters 1987 Malanotte-Rizzoli et al. (1997, 1999) LIW/CIW Lascaratos et al. (1999) CIW LIW

22. 1991 Malanotte-Rizzoli et al. (1999) LIW/CIW Adriatic waters Lascaratos et al. (1999) CIW LIW

23. TASK 5700 : Months 30-36 Assessment of the value of gliders in the overall system Evaluation of - value and potential in an operational system - complementarity/overlap with other elements of the system Critical recommendation for the potential of gliders in a future Mediterranean Observing System • Possible extensions • - coastal monitoring • “virtual mooring”