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PacIOOS' New Look & Feel
Think something's different? You're right, PacIOOS is undergoing a "facelift", and we are excited to share our new branding with you! Our goal was to develop a simple, clean, and memorable branding that captures what PacIOOS stands for: empowering ocean users and stakeholders in the Pacific Islands through accurate, reliable, and innovative coastal and ocean information, tools, and services.
The new logo combines PacIOOS' focus on oceanic and atmospheric information, and the bright blue color scheme was chosen to remind of the warm climate in the Pacific Islands region. The square shape resembles graphs and data plots relating to PacIOOS' technical expertise in collecting, processing, and serving data. The serif font, typically used in scientific publications, reflects our proximity to academia. As we roll out our new branding, you will start to see changes to our outreach materials, collateral, and website. Enhancements to our design and overall user experience will further PacIOOS' goal to provide data and information that are easy to access and use. For instance, the new PacIOOS newsletter is now mobile-friendly so that you can read it on the go! Check it out and stay tuned!
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A new land-based receiver was installed atop of Mount Kaʻala, Oʻahu. |
Receivers on Top of the Hill
Under the supervision of Dr. Kim Holland, the
Shark Research Group from the Hawaiʻi Institute of Marine Biology
continues to tag sharks in waters off Hawaiʻi to collect valuable behavioral and oceanographic data. Previously, data were solely transmitted through the Argos satellite system whenever the tagged animal surfaced. However, since Argos satellite availability averages only 6-12 minutes per hour in Hawai'i, land-based receivers are now being installed at high elevations around Maui and O'ahu to augment the satellite array and increase data throughput from fin-mounted tags. Pilot projects in Hawai'i have shown that land-based receivers can significantly increase data recovery - in some cases by a factor of ten. Receivers, such as the one installed atop of Mount Ka'ala, O'ahu, have the potential to detect signals in a range of 90 km. PacIOOS and the Integrated Ocean Observing System (
IOOS) are supporting the project as part of the Ocean Technology Transition Initiative.
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Young Brothers, Ltd. contributed anchor chain to PacIOOS' wave buoy program. |
Big Mahalo to Young Brothers, Ltd.
Every year, Young Brothers, Ltd. Community Support Program assists selected community-oriented organizations with their transportation needs. In addition to providing freight transportation to the
PacIOOS wave buoy program, Young Brothers, Ltd. also generously donated approximately 4,250 lbs of anchor chain to PacIOOS. The chain will serve as weight for about five wave buoy moorings.
Big Mahalo to Young Brothers, Ltd. for your continued support!
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Gordon Walker (right) is one of the mentors in the Maile Mentoring Bridge program. |
Maile Mentoring Bridge Program
The first cohort of undergraduate students from the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (
SOEST)
Maile Mentoring Bridge program recently earned their bachelor's degree. The program is specifically tailored to recruit and retain Native Hawaiian and kamaʻāina undergraduate students in ocean, earth, and environmental science degree programs. Gordon Walker, Oceanographic Technician from
PacIOOS' Near Shore Water Quality Group, is one of the mentors in the program. Gordon enjoyed the enriching experience and stressed that he benefited greatly from his time as a mentor. He will continue to serve as a mentor in upcoming semesters. Congratulations to all mentors and mentees for implementing a successful program!
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Aloha to a New PacIOOS Partner
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Palau Office of Climate Change
PacIOOS is excited to welcome a new Memorandum of Agreement (
MOA) partner.
The Office of Climate Change's mission is to enhance Palau's resilience to the impacts of climate change and disasters. Based within the Republic of Palau National Government, the Office of Climate Change coordinates and supports activities to: 1)
enhance adaptation and resilience to the expected impacts of climate change across all sectors; 2) improve Palau's ability to manage unexpected disasters and minimize disaster risks; and 3) mitigate global climate change by working towards low carbon emission development, maximizing energy efficiency, protecting carbon sinks, and minimizing greenhouse gas emissions.
PacIOOS looks forward to refining its climate change related decision-support tools with the support of the Palau Office of Climate Change.
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Welcome to the Team, Ryan!
After volunteering with Dr. Pierre Flament's Radio Oceanography Lab (radlab) at the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST) at the University of Hawaiʻi last year, Ryan Hlivak recently joined the team as the Laboratory Assistant & Assistant Technician to support the mapping of ocean surface currents in real-time. Ryan's main responsibilities include
monitoring the data storage server and links from the field equipment that connect to the server. In addition, Ryan performs maintenance tasks on antennas, circuit boards, and other electrical components, and assists with hardware testing.
Before joining the radlab team, Ryan studied biology, chemistry and computer animation at the University of Rochester. He is now looking forward to learning as much as possible about ocean surface currents and other oceanographic dynamics in order to pursue a degree in physical oceanography. Ryan truly enjoys that every day is different and new challenges arise, both in the lab and in the field. Mapping ocean surface currents in real-time supports the U.S. Coast Guard's search and rescue operations and informs emergency responders in cases of oil or hazardous spills. Data also enhance modeling capabilities, which support safe navigation and many other needs.
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