IDBR: Development of a miniature oceanographic data recorder that can be carried by marine mammals and other pelagic species

在以前由美国国家科学基金会资助的研究中，开发并使用了小型视频和数据记录器，可以连接到自由活动的海洋哺乳动物上，以观察它们的水下行为，跟踪它们的三维运动并记录它们的环境(例如，Science 283：993-996,1999；Science 288：133-136,2000)。该项目以这一成功为基础，开发了微型动物携带的海洋数据记录器，将记录关于电导率(盐度)、温度和溶解氧的精细空间和时间分辨率数据，以及利用小至12公斤的海洋动物在水柱中的三维位置和在表面的地理位置。海洋哺乳动物和其他远洋脊椎动物(如海龟、企鹅和大型鱼类)可以携带海洋学仪器，以相对较低的成本记录精细的空间和时间分辨率数据，特别是在科考船不经常访问的地区(如北冰洋和南大洋)，以及在海冰和恶劣天气对后勤构成严峻挑战的冬季。同时测量电导率(盐度)、温度和溶解氧作为水柱位置(垂直和水平)的函数，对于了解一个区域的物理和生物海洋学是基本的。这种高分辨率的数据，当应用于大的地理区域时，可以提供关于海洋环流和结构的关键信息，这些信息影响着大范围的气候和生态系统过程。海洋是了解气候变化的一个关键因素，全球对天气数据的需求越来越大。大多数次表层海洋学数据是从船舶调查和漂流者部署中获得的。动物携带的仪器为增强这些数据提供了一种成本相对较低的替代方案，特别是在极地地区。

In previous NSF-funded studies, small video and data recorders were developed and used that can be attached to free-ranging marine mammals to observe their underwater behavior, track their three-dimensional movements and record their environment (e.g., Science 283:993-996, 1999; Science 288:133-136, 2000). This project builds upon this success by developing miniature, animal-borne oceanographic data recorders (mini-ODRs) that will record fine spatial and temporal resolution data on conductivity (salinity), temperature and dissolved oxygen as well as three-dimensional location in the water column and geolocation at the surface using marine animals as small as 12 kg. Marine mammals and other pelagic vertebrates (e.g., sea turtles, penguins large fishes) that range throughout the world's oceans and descend to depths of up to 2,000 m have the potential of carrying oceanographic instruments that record fine spatial and temporal resolution data at relatively low cost, especially in areas that are not frequently visited by research vessels (e.g., the Arctic Ocean and Southern Ocean) and during the winter when sea ice and harsh weather pose severe logistical challenges. The simultaneous measurement of conductivity (salinity), temperature and dissolved oxygen as a function of location (vertical and horizontal) in the water column is fundamental in understanding the physical and biological oceanography of a region. Such fine resolution data, when applied to large geographic areas, can provide critical information on ocean circulation and structure which influence climate and ecosystem processes over large areas. The oceans are a key element in understanding climate change, and there is an increasing need for synoptic data on a global level. Most sub-surface oceanographic data have been obtained from ship-based surveys and the deployment of drifters. Animal-borne instruments provide a relatively low cost alternative for augmenting these data, especially in polar regions.