MOORINGS AND DRIFTERS FOR REAL-TIME INTERDISCIPLINARY OCEANOGRAPHY

A telemetering electronics/control unit (OASIS) has been developed for use on moorings and free-floating drifters. The OASIS controllers are part of a long-term ''coastal ocean observatory,'' consisting of an i nfrastructure of ships, submersibles, an array of remote sensing platf orms (moorings, drifters), communication links between sensors and lab oratory, and data management facilities. The OASIS controller coordina tes retrieval of data from a varying array of up to 28 oceanographic s ensors, which may output digital, analog, or frequency data. The contr oller provides scheduling, sensor control software, data logging, prel iminary data processing, and two-way telemetry between remote platform and ship or shore station. Telemetry allows real-time access to data and permits users to alter control parameters as necessary. Two OASIS moorings have been successfully deployed off the central California co ast since 1992. Real-time access and two-way telemetry has allowed the moorings to become testbeds for the deployment of new sensors and wid ely used observational and planning tools. Over longer timescales the moorings will be an important tool for tracking environmental variabil ity. OASIS drifters have been tested in ii deployments off California and 3 deployments in the equatorial Pacific. This paper describes the OASIS controller, its deployment on moorings and drifters, and present s oceanographic data that demonstrate the types of information obtaine d both from central California and the equatorial Pacific.