On a scientific expedition to the island country of Kiribati, we noticed a problem. Coming from a technology background, and being entirely new to the science of the ocean, we weren’t sure if we were missing something. The mission was to deploy underwater temperature loggers and to conduct a photographic survey around a coral reef. It’s now been over two years, and although a return expedition is planned to retrieve the data loggers in 2021, in the meantime we don’t know what temperatures the corals are experiencing.
As most people are aware by now, the coral reefs around the world are facing a crisis. Corals are animals, and they are extremely sensitive to temperature. If the temperature increases just 1 ºC compared to their historical maximum temperature, they begin to bleach. If the heat stress is sustained, they will die. When the coral dies, the entire ecosystem of the reef collapses. But it’s not just the coral reefs that are threatened by a warming ocean. As the ocean temperature and chemistry changes, the effects ripple through ocean life. It didn’t seem right that scientists have to wait years to see how the temperatures are changing at the reefs they are trying to protect. Aqualink was started to help address this challenge. To know where and when heat stress in the ocean will occur, we need to measure it, in real-time.
The idea is simple, let’s build a global ocean temperature monitoring solution. There is some incredible existing technology that uses satellites to measure the ocean’s surface temperature from space. However, coral reefs and other important marine ecosystems are not always near the surface, and complex ocean dynamics can create a large temperature difference just a few meters down. To augment the satellite temperature, we partnered with Sofar Ocean to design a buoy that measures the temperature at the ocean floor. By building as many of these buoys as we can, and deploying them around the world, we can begin to build a dataset that helps in understanding where and when heat stress in the ocean will occur. By measuring, we can understand. And by understanding, we can begin to help.
We are going to build as many of these buoys as there are people interested in using them to understand their local marine ecosystem. Aqualink is giving these away for free. The only thing we ask in return is that they are used. The goal is a global ocean monitoring network that streams the temperature data in real-time to an easily accessible web interface.
Once the buoys are deployed, they will begin to immediately send temperature data over a satellite connection. They will work anywhere in the world and are entirely self-sufficient, being powered directly from solar. In addition to two temperature sensors, they will also stream weather information such as wind and wave data. One of the most valuable things we can do to augment this new global ocean dataset is to upload survey imagery to begin correlating the in-situ sensors with visual observations. While spending time with scientists in the field, we noticed a lack of standardized tools and data formats. An incredible amount of effort goes into collecting ocean data, often times teams outfitted with SCUBA tanks, underwater tablets, and waterproof cameras dive down to record observations. However, most of the time this data gets recorded into local spreadsheets. Data formats from team to team differ in enough ways that sharing is difficult and a lack of a centralized repository makes data access for the general public hard to navigate. To address this we built a web interface that gives the tools to local managers to upload and structure observations. We also created a video that can be used as quick field guide for taking useful photographic surveys.
Heading to Aqualink.org will show a world view with pins for each proposed monitoring site. The map can be overlaid with global data such as Heat Stress or Sea Surface Temperature from NOAA’s Coral Reef Watch.
Each pin in the map will soon be replaced by an Aqualink buoy. However, for many reasons, not every site will be able to deploy a buoy. This could be due to regulations, difficulty in deployment, or sensitivity of the environment. In this case we have fully integrated with NOAA satellite data.
For each site, with or without a buoy, we report the surface temperature as measured from satellite, along with the historical max for that specific site, the alert level, and a time-series plot of the temperature data. If a buoy can be deployed, we will make sure it happens, and they begin shipping this month. A few sites are already up and running, such as Keahole Point in Kona, Hawaii.
Each site on the Aqualink web app has a detailed page outlining the satellite data, buoy data, heat stress alert level, as well as weather and a time history of the temperature. But perhaps most importantly for the site manager, it provides the ability to upload survey imagery and correlate it with all the other data.
When a user uploads imagery, it provides a snapshot in time of the measured temperature with visual observations. By tagging the images, we are beginning to create a structured database that future machine learning algorithms can use to help predict heat stress events, such as coral bleaching. Adding surveys also connects the local ecosystem manager to a global network of scientists and engineers that are working everyday to protect these sensitive environments. The datasets are free and available to everyone.
We are really excited to launch today and make the Aqualink app and buoy available. The tool is free and available to everyone, even if you don’t have a buoy. To get started, head over to Aqualink and create a new location. All the data and image functionality will be available within 24 hours. If you would like to add a buoy to your site, apply for a one here and we will be in touch. We welcome all feedback and will be working continuously to improve the entire experience of monitoring the ocean and connecting with scientists.
-Thank you from the Aqualink team, Pete, Lyndon, and Drew.
