Collaborative Research: An Engineering Study for a Cabled Observatory on the Beaufort Shelf

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This SGER is one of three collaborative efforts to define the instrumentation, sites and budget for a cabled observatory adjacent to the continental shelf of the Beaufort Sea. FY04 federal legislation calls for building a Barrow Global Climate Change Facility near Barrow, Alaska. As with cabled observatories envisioned elsewhere, this is an unprecedented opportunity for continuous, real-time access to the water column, the underside of sea ice and ocean bottom sediments.Planning for this facility has been proceeding for the past year, but the emphasis has been nearly solely on the physical facility (i.e., the building). Without dedicated planning to the science infrastructure being done soon, it is possible that the best opportunity to undertake the best science in this venue may be unrealized.The methodology will be to first hold a workshop in Barrow, bringing together oceanographers,seismologists, biologists, sea ice specialists, oil industry representatives and educators. The focus will be a discussion of what instrumentation would be necessary to study the Beaufort Shelf and adjacent waters. The resulting report will form the basis for engineering studies that would include preliminary plans for implementation. These plans would concentrate on adaptation of technology being developed for other seafloor observatories and how to exploit devices routinely deployed on moorings. A second meeting would result in an engineering report, translating the original science plan into a series of technical requirements for an Arctic seafloor installation.It should be noted in the area of "Broader Impacts" that this effort has been extensively coordinated with key constituencies of the Barrow community, and is endorsed by leaders of that community.The three separate SGER proposals are:0438100 Chayes, Dale Columbia University0438102 Proshutinsky, Andrey Wood Hole Oceanographic Institution Chave, Alan Detrick, Robert0439107 Coakley, Bernard University of Alaska Fairbanks Weingartner, ThomasThis combination of talents is both necessary and sufficient to complete the tasks as proposed.