Publication of Special Edition of "Limnology and Oceanography"

自主和拉格朗日平台和传感器（ALPS）的最新进展已被应用于物理，化学和生物学研究的范围广泛。这类仪器有助于在相关的时间和空间尺度上进行采样，同时提供所需的连续存在，以捕捉对偶发事件的多重认识，并确定长期季节性和年际变化的特征。剖面浮标、包括滑翔器和漂流器在内的自主水下航行器提供了高分辨率空间覆盖、通过水柱垂直采样和延长（数天至数年）部署的组合，这是其他技术无法轻易实现的。这些新的观测能力的新应用利用了空间覆盖和连续存在的组合，以促进我们对物理，化学和生物过程的理解。随着ALPS技术的成熟，他们已经从专业的工程/科学团队过渡到支持更大科学界的主流应用。从早期的科学任务的结果现在变得可用，使这是一个很好的时间来审查如何ALPS技术已被应用于解决引人注目的科学问题，并在理解，从这些程序所产生的目前的进展。 由于这一奖励，莫林博士和同事们负责制作湖沼学和海洋学特刊，题为“自主和拉格朗日平台和传感器的科学结果”，作为一种手段，以提高对更广泛的科学和管理界在自主系统中取得的进展的认识，展示这些系统用于科学研究的可访问性，最重要的是，强调这些发展中的系统所带来的科学发现。

Recent advances in autonomous and Lagrangian platforms and sensors (ALPS) have been applied to physical, chemical and biological studies on a wide range of scales. This class of instruments facilitates sampling at relevant temporal and spatial scales while providing the continuous presence needed to capture multiple realizations of episodic events and characterize longer-term seasonal and inter-annual changes. Profiling floats, autonomous underwater vehicles, including gliders and drifters, offer a combination of high-resolution spatial coverage, vertical sampling through the water column and extended (days to years) deployments that cannot be easily achieved with other technologies. Novel applications of these new observational capabilities exploit the combination of spatial coverage and continuous presence to advance our understanding of physical, chemical and biological processes. As ALPS technologies mature they have transitioned from specialized engineering/science teams to mainstream applications supporting the larger scientific community. Results from early science missions are now becoming available, making this an excellent time to review how ALPS technologies have been applied to address compelling science questions and present advances in understanding that have resulted from these programs. As a result of this reward, Dr. Moline and colleagues are responsible for producing a special issue of Limnology and Oceanography, entitled "Scientific Results from Autonomous and Lagrangian Platforms and Sensors" as a means to increase awareness of the progress being made in autonomous systems to the broader scientific and management communities, demonstrate accessibility of these systems for scientific study, and, most importantly, highlight the scientific discovery that is enabled by these developing systems.