Air-Sea Flux Stations
The Air-Sea Flux Stations sub-facility is responsible for open-ocean moorings that measure real-time meteorological and oceanographic conditions at the sea surface. In particular, the stations provide data on air-sea heat and moisture fluxes, which, when combined with meteorological data, are essential for climate change research. The continuous time series provided by the air-sea flux stations are particularly important because many of the processes that control heat and moisture fluxes exchange show variability on a wide range of time scales.
- The Southern Ocean Flux Station in big seas southwest of Tasmania.
- Recovery of the Southern Ocean Flux Station 50nm from its original position after heavy weather caused it to break its mooring.
Currently, the only air-sea flux station operated by IMOS is the Southern Ocean Flux Station, located in sub-Antarctic waters 580km southwest of Tasmania at the Southern Ocean Time Series site. Moored in water 4.6km deep, the station was recently recovered after breaking its mooring after 11.5 months of successful real-time data delivery. The station was unharmed and successfully recovered. After identification of the cause of failure and a subsequent redesign, it is due for re-deployment at the site in November 2011. Currently a second identical station is being developed at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, which will allow moorings to be hot-swapped in future deployments to create a continuous time series. To compliment the Southern Ocean station, an air-sea flux station is also planned for future deployment in the Timor Sea north of Australia.
