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What is a Glider
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NOC currently run three shallow water Gliders (i.e., 200m depth rated and geared for best performance in the range 0-200m). Glider-117 Zephyr Fitted with a none-pumped SeaBird CTD, WetLabs Triplet (CDOM, Chlorophyll, Backscatter) and an Aanderaa Oxygen Optode. Glider-175 Rooney Fitted with a none-pumped SeaBird CTD, Rockland microRider Turbulence Probe. Glider-194 - yet to be named - delivered Oct 2010 Fitted with a pumped SeaBird CTD, WetLabs Triplet (CDOM, Chlorophyll, Backscatter) and an Aanderaa Oxygen Optode. » More information about Glider technology » More information about Rockland microRider The Glider is an autonomous underwater vehicle which can move up and down in the ocean by changing its buoyancy. A rudder and wings allow steerable gliding, moving it forward.
It can move at speeds of up to 0.4m/s in a vertical sawtooth-shaped path with a range of about 30 days (1500 km), while measuring temperature, conductivity and other ocean parameters. Long term deployment missions of the Glider in areas such as the Irish Sea will eventually provide valuable data for marine and climate studies. However, in the short term the Glider technology provides another tool for monitoring the water quality since the data can be relayed back to base in near-real time via satellite communications. Furthermore, it can also be re-directed from set missions (via satellite communications) to investigate other areas within the locality, that might be more scientifically interesting (e.g. a developing algal bloom identified from satellite observations). |
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