Coastal and Shelf Seas
The Coastal and Shelf Seas Group (CSSG) provide engineering support to NOC observational programmes in coastal regions and shelf seas worldwide.
This is achieved by providing reliable instrumentation, expert technical advice and field support. When necessary the CSSG develop new instruments to fulfil the requirements of the scientists. The group also investigates and instigates future instrument development by collaborating whenever possible with other NOC groups and the wider scientific community.
The CSSG have a large number of scientific instruments ready to be deployed at any given moment on a number of different platforms. This allows scientists to take measurementsof water velocities, wave spectra, salinity, temperature, pressure, oxygen, turbidity, spectrophotometry, chlorophyll as well as meteorological data and more. When required this data can be telemetered in near realtime back to the Lab to be analysed or published on the web.
The CSSG is responsible for the three coastal waters slocum gliders. Gliders are autonomous vehicles that can carry a suite of instruments. The gliders can be programmed with a mission telling it where to go and what to do. Using GPS and dead reckoning it can navigate to different waypoints taking scientific measurements along the way. The data is sent back to the lab at regular intervals via satellite meaning real time measurements are possible in any waters anywhere in the world.
When an instrument isn’t available ‘off the shelf’ or isn’t suitable the CSSG can design and build or modify an instrument to suit. Every member of the CSSG is a highly qualified professional engineer with a background in electronics and applied physics.
CSSG have recently started working towards incorporating custom sensor suites into the slocum gliders. These sensors could be anything from acoustic current profilers to assist turbulence and microstructure measurements to passive monitoring of sea mammals and even acoustic modems allowing telemetry from sea bed moored instruments. This is a very exciting area of research for the group to be a part of.
Communicating science to the public as well as to the scientific community is very important and the CSSG has been doing this for many years. Whether it is presenting technical talks at scientific conferences, discussing our work with MPs at the House of Commons or the Royal Society, visiting schools, or chatting to the public at various events, members of the CSSG are always happy and enthusiastic when talking about their work.
