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PacIOOS Tools and Instruments
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Web users can navigate through archival plots of PacIOOS' coastal forecasts. |
New Online Archive for PacIOOS Coastal Forecasts
In addition to the most recent PacIOOS wave run-up, six-day high sea level, and harbor surge forecasts, website users can now also view historical plots of the forecasts. The web pages feature a new "Archive" tab, which provides access to all available historical forecast plots, reaching back to the initial implementation of each forecast. Users have the option to choose a date from the calendar, use the slider tool, or the animation buttons to quickly navigate through the images. Two plots are provided for each day, generated at 6:00am and 6:00pm of the local time zone. The archive was created in response to user requests to allow for enhanced comparison and validation of the forecasts with the observed coastal impacts. The implementation was supported by the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) Ocean Technology Transition Program.
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PacIOOS' wave buoy team redeploys the wave buoy off Kāneʻohe, Oʻahu. |
Kāneʻohe Wave Buoy Back on Site
The PacIOOS wave buoy off Kāneʻohe Bay, Oʻahu, was redeployed this month and continues to provide real-time information on wave height, direction, and period, as well as sea surface temperature. The collected data also supports the efforts of the Hawaiʻi Natural Energy Institute (HNEI) to test in-water wave energy conversion devices at the U.S. Navy Wave Energy Test Site (WETS). Data management for the wave buoys is made possible through long-term partnerships with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Coastal Data Information Program (
CDIP
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Detections from a recently tagged female tiger shark off Maui. |
Researchers from the Hawaiʻi Institute of Marine Biology (HIMB) recently equipped a 10-foot female tiger shark (#132069) off Maui with a satellite tag. Multiple detections have been transmitted since the shark was tagged in February and can be viewed on PacIOOS' Shark Tracking Pages and PacIOOS Voyager. As soon as weather and ocean conditions allow, shark researchers plan to tag additional tiger sharks. Please note, the shark tracking pages do not provide real-time monitoring and do not serve as a monitoring system.
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Animal telemetry experts and data users met in Honolulu for a two-day workshop. |
Animal Telemetry Network Workshop
More than 55 researchers, resources managers, and ocean enthusiasts came together for the two-day PacIOOS Animal Telemetry Network Workshop in Honolulu. Organized by the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS), PacIOOS, and the Hawaiʻi Institute of Ma
rine Biology (HIMB), the workshop's goal was to explore regional needs and priorities for animal telemetry observations of aquatic species and to identify existing telemetry assists and capabilities. Over 20 speakers from various sectors presented, and workshop attendees discussed ongoing telemetry efforts, needs, opportunities, and challenges in break-out groups. The workshop is one in a series of regional workshops convened by the U.S. Animal Telemetry Network Program. A workshop report will be made available online.
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Executive Committee members learn about impacts to infrastructure and property caused by flooding and erosion along West Maui. |
Executive Committee Meeting on Maui
The PacIOOS Executive Committee, a subset of the Governing Council, met on Maui for its annual meeting. On the first day, meeting participants discussed IOOS and PacIOOS programmatic updates, reviewed revised performance measures, and explored opportunities to increase PacIOOS' impact in the Insular Pacific. The Pacific Disaster Center (PDC) hosted the meeting at their facility and provided Executive Committee Members with an overview of PDC's operations and tools. On Day 2, staff from the Maui County Planning Department and the University of Hawaiʻi Sea Grant College Program led a site visit to different locations in West Maui that experience significant impacts from chronic wave flooding and erosion. With funding from NOAA's Coastal Resilience Grant Program, PacIOOS is developing a high-resolution, real-time wave run-up forecast for this particular stretch of coastline to enhance preparedness and resilience.
While on Maui, PacIOOS also took the opportunity to meet with Maui partners and stakeholders. Mahalo to everyone who joined the pau hana -- it was great to learn about ongoing initiatives and to discuss potential future collaborations!
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Students answer salinity and turbidity questions to score points at the Science Olympiad. Credit: Stevenson Media Hawaiʻi; Matthew Tom. |
Science Olympiad at Stevenson
Stevenson Middle School on Oʻahu hosted a Science Olympiad this month where teams of parents and students competed to solve STEM related challenges and questions. PacIOOS supported one of the activity stations to test participants' ocean science knowledge. Teams successfully navigated through questions and hands-on activities about water quality and ocean chemistry to boost their score sheets. More than 200 participants took part in the event.
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Island Effects on Weather and Climate
Feng Hsiao is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Atmospheric Sciences at the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (
SOEST) at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. Under the supervision of Professor Yi-Leng Chen, Feng is part of the Atmospheric Modeling Group, conducting real-time atmospheric forecasts for various grid sizes.
Air temperature,
wind, and
rain forecasts are all available on the PacIOOS website for the main Hawaiian Islands, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa. The forecasts also serve as important input for the PacIOOS wave and ocean circulation models. In addition, Feng generates hindcasts for the Hawaiian Island chain, incorporating satellite, buoy, and other observational data to validate the model.
Feng received his Bachelor and Master of Science degree from the National Taiwan University and worked as a research assistant before moving to Hawaiʻi. Feng's research interest focuses on how the islands affect weather and climate in Hawaiʻi by applying high resolution numerical models and analyzing observational data. He finds great value in the diverse applicability of the forecasts, including real-time weather forecasts, assessment of wind and wave energy resources, fire weather, health effects, hydrology, seabird flight ecology, marine biology, and more.
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