ESOM I and II final report

Abstract

An Engineering Surface Oceanographic Mooring (ESOM) program was initiated in 1989 by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution for the purpose of evaluating the long term, in situ performance of new moored array materials and sensors. For logistic and practical reasons, a site 12 miles southwest of Bermuda, with a water depth of 3000m was selected to deploy the mooring. Following well established design practice the upper part of the mooring down to a depth of 1900m was made of plastic jacketed, steel armored wire ropes and cables. Groups of test samples were attached at different depths to the main mooring line. The lower part of the mooring was made of compliant, plaited nylon rope. The mooring was deployed in March 1989. It was recovered and reset, with a vertical acoustic telemetry prototype system, in April 1990. The at-sea phase of the program ended in November 1990 when the termination of a test cable failed and the mooring broke loose. The entire mooring was recovered and all of its samples and components were carefully inspected and tested. In addition to the novel acoustic link, mooring components tested included new wire ropes, new electromechanical cables and their terminations, low drag fairings, fishbite resistant jackets, and a new type of surface buoy.