Aloha from PacIOOS,
The second quarter of 2013 was busy with travel throughout our region, repairing sensors, celebrating Earth Day and World Oceans Day with awesome partners, and much more! Below are some of news items and updates that w e think stakeholders will be interested in learning about. Please check out our website for more information.
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New Data Layers and Tools
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 | Opening screen of
PacIOOS Voyager |
PacIOOS Voyager Upgrade
All components of Voyager have migrated to Google Maps Version 3, which Google Maps say is "especially designed to be faster and more applicable to mobile devices, as well as traditional desktop browser applications."
While many things have changed behind the scenes from a developer's perspective, we have worked hard to minimize any loss or change in Voyager's overall functionality. For more details on these changes, please see our Voyager News Page.
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 | Atmospheric Model for
Mariana Islands |
High Resolution Atmospheric Models Now Available for Guam and CNMI
PacIOOS now runs two new high resolution regional atmosphere models for the Mariana Islands region (CNMI at approximately 12-km resolution and Guam at approximately 3-km resolution). These Weather Research and Forecasting
(WRF) mesoscale numerical weather prediction models provide hourly, 7-day forecasts of surface air temperature, wind, rain, humidity, and air pressure. Model runs are produced by PacIOOS Principal Investigator Dr. Yi-Leng Chen of the Department of Meteorology in the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST) at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. These models complement our existing global NCEP GFS forecast as well as our WRF collection in Hawaiʻi. Check them out in Voyager.
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New layer in Voyager:
shallow benthic habitats in
Insular Pacific
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NOAA Benthic Habitat Layers for Insular Pacific Now in PacIOOS Voyager
To supplement the main Hawaiian islands, Voyager's "benthic habitats" category now contains NOAA shallow-water benthic habitat maps for other PacIOOS regions throughout the Insular Pacific, including islands in American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), Guam, and Palau. Layers provided by NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS). For more information on this layer, please see the Voyager News Page.
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PacIOOS Receives $2.35 Million in Federal Funding
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ( NOAA) has awarded $2,356,627 to PacIOOS to support the annual operation of the observing, modeling, data management, and outreach components of the system. In addition to maintaining operations, the funding provides resources to deploy a new wave buoy off Kaua'i, water quality sensors on Maui, and instruments to expand our provision of real-time surface currents to Hawai'i Island; to enhance our water quality buoys to become part of a global ocean acidification network; to expand our ocean forecast model to areas of the insular Pacific; and to continue the integration and visualization of biological, physical, and static spatial data throughout the region.
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Teamwork to repair ICON
station in Lao Lao Bay
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PacIOOS Travels Across Region
Staff visited parts of the PacIOOS region this quarter to achieve various objectives. In Saipan, PacIOOS collaborated with NOAA and CNMI Division of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to repair and replace elements of the Integrated Coral Observing Network (ICON) station in Lao Lao Bay. This station streams near real-time data on atmospheric and ocean properties that influence the health of coral reefs to managers in Saipan and interested parties around the world. In Guam, PacIOOS conducted a site visit to our near shore water quality sensor with local liaisons to ensure ongoing operations. In Majuro and Pohnpei, PacIOOS held stakeholder meetings to provide updates on recent program developments, demonstrate various tools, and learn about local issues and needs. PacIOOS warmly thanks all our wonderful hosts during these visits.
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 | PacIOOS Water Quality
Activity for Earth Day |
PacIOOS Celebrates Earth Day and World Oceans Day
PacIOOS was excited to celebrate Earth Day this year with a number of partners. At the Mauka to Makai Environmental Expo at the Waikiki Aquarium (sponsored by the City and County of Honolulu's Department of Environmental Services and the State of Hawai'i Department of Health Clean Water Branch) and the Moloka'i Earth Day event sponsored by The Nature Conservancy ( TNC), PacIOOS offered hands-on water quality activities for children and their families. During the Marine Advanced Technology Education ( MATE) Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) competition, PacIOOS offered real-world insight into the theme of the competition: ocean observing.
For World Oceans Day, PacIOOS joined the efforts of the Friends of Kewalos in their annual basin park clean up to teach participants about water quality and how to measure it. At the Waikiki Aquarium, PacIOOS was a main attraction with four different exhibits: Shark Tagging; Ocean Forecasting; Water Quality; and PacIOOS Voyager.
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PacIOOS Welcomes Four New Partners
PacIOOS is excited to welcome four new institutional partners to the membership of PacIOOS: Marine and Environmental Research Institute of Pohnpei (MERIP), Conservation Society of Pohnpei (CSP), Micronesia Conservation Trust (MCT), and Office of the Palau Automated Land and Resource Information System (PALARIS). If your organization would like to become a PacIOOS partner, please download, sign, and return our Memorandum of Agreement.
MERIP is a humanitarian, not-for-profit organization that works throughout Micronesia. Although they serve many roles, their main focus is developing low-impact aquaculture as a means of income generation for communities who sponsor and support marine protected areas.
Founded by a group of concerned citizens, the CSP mission is to preserve and enhance the natural heritage of Pohnpei State by promoting community-led resource management and sustainable development.
MCT supports biodiversity conservation and related sustainable development for the people of Micronesia in the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), the Republic of Palau (ROP), the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI), the US Territory of Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). PALARIS develops the National Geographic Information System (GIS), a centralized land and resource system to inventory and support the management of human, economic and natural resources of the Republic of Palau.
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 | | Members of IOOS FAC |
IOOS Federal Advisory Committee Releases Vision for IOOS
The IOOS Federal Advisory Committee ( FAC) recently released their vision statement for IOOS. The vision reads: "I OOS is an innovative public/private enterprise of integrated national and regional ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes observations that equips the nation to face natural and manmade risks to economic growth, prosperity, and survivability, and to ensure a safe, productive, and resilient ocean and coastal zone." For more information on the vision and enabling the vision, click here.
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Based within the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology at the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, PacIOOS is the Pacific Islands regional component of the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS�). PacIOOS is a partnership of data providers and users working together to enhance ocean observations and develop, disseminate, evaluate, and apply ocean data and information products designed to address the environmental, economic, and public safety needs of stakeholders who call the Pacific Islands home. For more information on PacIOOS, please visit www.pacioos.org.
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Copyright � 2013. All Rights Reserved.
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