Abstract:
The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) Hawaii Ocean Timeseries (HOT)
Site (WHOTS), 100 km north of Oahu, Hawaii, is intended to provide long-term, high-quality
air-sea fluxes as a part of the NOAA Climate Observation Program. The WHOTS mooring also
serves as a coordinated part of the HOT program, contributing to the goals of observing heat,
fresh water and chemical fluxes at a site representative of the oligotrophic North Pacific Ocean.
The approach is to maintain a surface mooring outfitted for meteorological and oceanographic
measurements at a site near 22.75°N, 158°W by successive mooring turnarounds. These
observations will be used to investigate air–sea interaction processes related to climate
variability.
The first three WHOTS moorings (WHOTS-1 through 3) were deployed in August 2004,
July 2005 and June 2006, respectively. This report documents recovery of the WHOTS-3
mooring and deployment of the fourth mooring (WHOTS-4). Both moorings used Surlyn foam
buoys as the surface element and were outfitted with two Air–Sea Interaction Meteorology
(ASIMET) systems. Each ASIMET system measures, records, and transmits via Argos satellite
the surface meteorological variables necessary to compute air–sea fluxes of heat, moisture and
momentum. The upper 155 m of the moorings were outfitted with oceanographic sensors for the
measurement of temperature, conductivity and velocity in a cooperative effort with R. Lukas of
the University of Hawaii. A pCO2 system was installed on the WHOT-3 buoy in a cooperative
effort with Chris Sabine at the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory.
The WHOTS mooring turnaround was done on the University of Hawaii research vessel
Kilo Moana, Cruise KM-07-08, by the Upper Ocean Processes Group of the Woods Hole
Oceanographic Institution. The cruise took place between 24 June and 1 July 2007. Operations
began with deployment of the WHOTS-4 mooring on 25 June at approximately 22°40.2′N,
157°57.0′W in 4756 m of water. This was followed by meteorological intercomparisons and
CTDs at the WHOTS-4 and WHOTS-3 sites. The WHOTS-3 mooring was recovered on June
28th followed by CTD operations at the HOT site and shipboard meteorological observations at
several sites to the south of the mooring site. This report describes these cruise operations, as
well as some of the in-port operations and pre-cruise buoy preparations.
