Our Better Work Stories
MetOcean Solutions’ Oceanographer Simon Weppe worked with Aqualink to source and deploy a Wave Buoy with temperature sensors at a subtropical reef offshore Raglan as part a global investigation into marine heatwaves https://aqualink.org/reefs/1241.
"Studying the ocean is both a passion and a job, so for most of us, it luckily doesn't have to end when the work day does,” says MetOcean Solutions’ Oceanographer Dr Julie Jakoboski. “When the ocean is a part of our daily lives in so many ways, it's exciting anytime we get the chance to deploy a new instrument, learn something new about what the ocean is doing, or improve our ocean forecasts and return this information to the ocean communities around New Zealand. I love days like this when - between pre-work surf, coding part of a new operational ocean observing system, doing fieldwork at sea, and analysing the results - the day revolves around the ocean."
MetOcean Solutions oceanographers are passionate about their work, and live and breathe being on or in the water. So much so, they often undertake scientific research in their own time. Whether it’s deploying instruments as part of philanthropic endeavours to increase understanding of oceanic processes and build ocean conservation technology (see image above) or being so passionate - and impatient! - about downloading and reviewing field deployment data that they simply don’t have time to get out of their wetsuit (we’re looking at you Julie Jakoboski!).
Julie, so excited about observation data there is no time to get out of her wetsuit.
In her own time, Julie took two Mangōpare temperature sensors out to the Jacksons Reef to validate the wave buoy temperature sensors (https://www.sofarocean.com/products/smart-mooring). While the sensors of the wave buoy showed a temperature variation of around 0.5 deg Celsius between the surface water and near bed (with the near bed waters being warmer!), the Mangōpare temperature sensors confirmed a strong thermocline at around 12-18 metres sub-surface (see Figure 3), with a thin layer of slightly colder water at the surface. Warmer water at depth suggests that the water mass is unstable (though to be sure we would need to consider salinity). The comparison between the Mangōpare temperature sensors (which have been calibrated to be accurate to within 0.02 degrees celcius – which explains the slight difference between sensors) and Sofar wave buoy temperature sensors provides our oceanographers with confidence that the Sofar temperature sensors are accurate within a given tolerance level. The Sofar temperature sensor data illustrates that the water column above Jacksons Reef often experiences these temperature inversions (and presumably strong thermoclines), with warmer waters near the seabed, while other times the water column is well mixed (see below).
The Mangōpare temperature sensors were developed within the Moana Project. The Moana Project is an MBIE Endeavour funded project that aims to improve the understanding of coastal ocean circulation, connectivity and marine heatwaves to provide information that supports New Zealand’s seafood industry. The sensors are designed to be deployed primarily on commercial fishing gear but can also be attached to recreational fishing gear.
Figure 1 - Summary wave buoy and temperature sensor data for offshore Raglan, 02/07/2021.
Figure 2 - Time series of near bed and near surface water temperatures as measured at Jackson Reef, offshore Raglan, NZ. Using a Sofar smart mooring system.
Figure 3 - Mangōpare temperature profile.
“There is no one-fits-all sensor solution for a reliable and overarching ocean observing system,” says Moana Project Science Lead Dr Joao de Souza. “It is essential to compare and understand the different data provided from each instrument, so we can build an observational ecosystem that serves multiple users. Both the Sofar buoys and Mangōpare sensors are important tools in our effort to better forecast the ocean around New Zealand.”