Measurements of salinity in the coastal ocean: A review of requirements and technologies

Salinity, a measure of the dissolved salts in seawater, is a fundamental pr operty of seawater and basic to understanding biological and physical proce sses in coastal waters. In the open ocean long term salinity measurements a re identified as necessary to understand global climate studies, hydrologic al cycle, and circulation. In the coastal oceans, information on salinity i s critical to understanding biological effects on ecosystem function such a s disease, nursery grounds, or harmful algal blooms and on physical process es such as freshwater runoff estuarine mixing, and coastal currents. While the importance of salinity is recognized, little attention has been given t o making routine measurements as to the location and frequency of such meas urements. These issues were addressed in a workshop concerned with salinity measurements in coastal oceans, requirements for such, and measurment tech nology.