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Oceanographic Measurements

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Abstract

This chapter describes various methods to measure the oceanographic variables that are dynamically significant. After a brief overview of the various motions and their temporal and spatial scales, the challenges of making measurements in a vast, inhospitable, and unforgiving environment are described. Then point measurements (pressure, temperature, salinity, sound speed, density, and velocity), Lagrangian measurements (floats and dye dispersion), and remote sensing methods (acoustic and electromagnetic) are described. Because many of the practical problems of oceanographic measurements are associated with the complete measurement system, examples of these and illustrative case studies of several experiments are given.

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Abbreviations

3-D:

three-dimensional

ADCP:

acoustic Doppler current profiler

AMODE-MST:

acoustic mid-ocean dynamics experiment-moving ship tomography

APE-HKE:

available potential energy-to-horizontal kinetic energy

ASFM:

acoustic scintillation flow meter

AUV:

autonomous undersea vehicles

AVHRR:

advanced very high-resolution radiometer

AVP:

absolute velocity profiler

AXBT:

air-expendable bathythermograph

BT:

bathythermograph

CT:

Couette–Taylor

CTD:

conductivity–temperature–depth/pressure

DIDSON:

dual frequency identification sonar

GPS:

global positioning system

HEM:

horizontal electrometer

HF:

high-frequency

IES:

inverted echosounder

IMET:

improved meteorological packages

NASA:

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

REMUS:

remote environmental monitorung units

SAR:

synthetic aperture radar

SI:

spark ignition

SODAR:

sound detection and ranging

SOFAR:

sound fixing and ranging

TOPEX:

topography experiment

XBT:

expendable bathythermograph

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California-San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, 92093-0230, La Jolla, CA, USA

    Teresa Chereskin Dr.

  2. Applied Physics Laboratory, University of Washington, 1013 NE 40th Street, 98105-6698, Seattle, WA, USA

    Bruce Howe Dr.

Authors
  1. Teresa Chereskin Dr.
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  2. Bruce Howe Dr.
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Teresa Chereskin Dr. or Bruce Howe Dr. .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Fachgebiet Strömungslehre und Aerodynamik, Technische Universität Darmstadt, Petersenstraße 30, 64287, Darmstadt, Germany

    Cameron Tropea Dr.

  2. Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, 842 W. Taylor St., 60607-7022, Chicago, IL, USA

    Alexander L. Yarin Dr.

  3. Mechanical Engineering, Michigan State University, A118 Engineering Research Complex, 48824-1326, East Lansing, MI, USA

    John F. Foss Dr.

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© 2007 Springer-Verlag

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Chereskin, T., Howe, B. (2007). Oceanographic Measurements. In: Tropea, C., Yarin, A.L., Foss, J.F. (eds) Springer Handbook of Experimental Fluid Mechanics. Springer Handbooks. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-30299-5_18

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-30299-5_18

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