Metadata Report for BODC Series Reference Number 1168631

• Metadata Summary

• Problem Reports

• Data Access Policy

• Narrative Documents

• Project Information

• Data Activity or Cruise Information

• Fixed Station Information

• BODC Quality Flags

• SeaDataNet Quality Flags

Metadata Summary

Problem Reports

No Problem Report Found in the Database

Data Access Policy

Open Data

These data have no specific confidentiality restrictions for users. However, users must acknowledge data sources as it is not ethical to publish data without proper attribution. Any publication or other output resulting from usage of the data should include an acknowledgment.

If the Information Provider does not provide a specific attribution statement, or if you are using Information from several Information Providers and multiple attributions are not practical in your product or application, you may consider using the following:

"Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v1.0."

Narrative Documents

Helzel Messtechnik WERA HF Radar

WERA is a shore based remote sensing system manufactured by Helzel Messtechnik. It is used for near real-time mapping of ocean surface currents, waves and wind direction using short radio wave radar. The method is based on horizon radar technology where a vertical polarised electromagnetic wave is coupled to the conductive ocean surface and will follow the curvature of the earth. This results in long range (up to 200 km) and high resolution data. The rough ocean surface interacts with the radio wave and, due to the Bragg Effect, back-scattered signals can be detected from ranges of more than 200 km. Data can be extracted from each grid point to generate time series of oceanographic data including surface currents, wind direction and significant wave height.

The WERA system can utilise broad frequency range from 5 to 50 MHz to provide ranges from 15 to more than 250 km. It also uses very low RF-power typically <30 Watts to guarantee no interference with other radio services.

For more information see the manufacturer's specification sheet

Coastal Observatory HF Radar Originators data processing document

Data originators processing

Data collected by the HF Radar system were transmitted to the lab for display on the internet and processing. Data were collected between 01 August 2005 and 06 December 2011 when the system was switched off signalling the end of the experiment. All data collected during this time have been processed using the National Oceanography Centre (NOC) (formerly Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory (POL)) tide/depth model to provide water depth for the wave inversion. From 07 September 2007 onwards, a new utility was introduced by the radar manufacturers Helzel, to give even more accurate positioning of the data on the sea surface. Data were recorded over 8 minutes and 52 seconds and collected every 20 minutes and these make up the livbay8 dataset. In addition to this after November 2009 the originator sampled data over 17 minutes and 44 seconds and was collected hourly. This data are included in the livbay8w dataset. The WERA hardware and measuring software was supplied by Helzel Messtechnik, the grid conversion and collection controlling software by Neptune Radar Ltd, and the inversion software to produce waves by Seaview Sensing Ltd.

The HF grid was made up of 320 cells however some of these include land and so are unusable. Other unusable cells include those directly between the two antennae sites (one in Llandulas and one in Formby) and those outside 60 degrees of each bore site (see data activity document for more information about the bore sites). This in practice cuts the good datasets down to 108 cells.

The originator has supplied wave, current and radial data to BODC. Currents and waves files hold combined data from both antennae sites, and hence were supplied as one file per sea surface position (cell). Radial files are data for only one site and therefore have two files per cell. They have not been quality controlled and include data for all cells. The current and wave files were supplied for only the 108 cells deemed usable. The current and wave data have been quality controlled by the originator and each file contains quality flags as well as data quality comments.

Originators quality control

Wave data

The data originator has quality controlled the wave data using the following principles:

• all data with 0.3 m > significant wave height > 7.0 m have been flagged as suspect
• a comparison has been made with DEFRA wavebuoy and any differences of > 3.5 m have been flagged as suspect

No wavebuoy data was available for comparison after 6th June 2011

Current data

The data originator has quality controlled the current data using the following principles:

• all data with current speeds > 1.3 ms^-1 have been removed
• using harmonic fit, all data with residuals > 0.5 ms^-1 have been removed

Please note that although when these data were supplied to BODC the data files included a header stating that current speeds gt; 1.3 ms^-1 had been removed this is not always the case and some values higher than this remain in the dataset.

The final dataset

Datasets livbay8 and livbay8w (as described above) were both supplied to BODC. Dataset livbay8 will be processed and banked by BODC whilst the dataset livbay8w will only be archived in its original format. Wave and current data have been quality controlled and have been supplied as combined data from both sites and will be processed further by BODC. Radial data have not been quality controlled and have been supplied as data for each site separately. This data will not be processed by BODC but are, along with the livbay8w dataset, available on request from BODC in its original format.

Coastal Observatory HF Radar Site and Cell Metadata

Site information

Master=Abergele/Llandulas, Slave=Formby.

Cell information

Coastal Observatory HF Radar Wave data BODC processing document

BODC received ASCII files from the originator, which have been archived along with the appropriate metadata documents. The wave data were converted from ASCII format into BODC internal format using a BODC transfer function. A file was supplied for each cell but they have been combined in to a single series containing time, position and dependant variable data for all of the valid cells of data. In order to produce files of an appropriate size the data have been split so that a series contains a month of data. During this process, the originator quality control flags were mapped to their BODC equivalent. Since the data are recorded over 8 minutes and 52 seconds and the time given in the originators files is the start time a correction of 266 seconds was applied to the originators times to give true data time (the central time for the averaging period).

The following table shows how the variables within the ASCII files were mapped to appropriate BODC parameter codes:

Quality control by BODC

These data have been quality controlled by the originator and originators flags have been mapped to their BODC equivalent. BODC has done no further quality control except to flag as suspect data values that lie outside the range expected. The data have been quality controlled by the originator and in some cases a whole month of data for a particular cell have been flagged as suspect (and contain no real data).

Project Information

Oceans 2025 Theme 10

Oceans 2025 is a strategic marine science programme, bringing marine researchers together to increase people's knowledge of the marine environment so that they are better able to protect it for future generations.

Theme 10: Integration of Sustained Observations in the Marine Environment spans all marine domains from the sea-shore to the global ocean, providing data and knowledge on a wide range of ecosystem properties and processes (from ocean circulation to biodiversity) that are critical to understanding Earth system behaviour and identifying change. They have been developed not merely to provide long-term data sets, but to capture extreme or episodic events, and play a key role in the initialisation and validation of models. Many of these SOs will be integrated into the newly developing UK Marine Monitoring Strategy - evolving from the Defra reports Safeguarding our Seas (2002) and Charting Progress (2005), thus contributing to the underpinning knowledge for national marine stewardship. They will also contribute to the UK GOOS Strategic Plan (IACMST, 2006) and the Global Marine Assessment.

Weblink: http://www.oceans2025.org/

Oceans 2025 - The NERC Marine Centres' Strategic Research Programme 2007-2012

Who funds the programme?

The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) funds the Oceans 2025 programme, which was originally planned in the context of NERC's 2002-2007 strategy and later realigned to NERC's subsequent strategy (Next Generation Science for Planet Earth; NERC 2007).

Who is involved in the programme?

The Oceans 2025 programme was designed by and is to be implemented through seven leading UK marine centres. The marine centres work together in coordination and are also supported by cooperation and input from government bodies, universities and other partners. The seven marine centres are:

• National Oceanography Centre, Southampton (NOCS)
• Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML)
• Marine Biological Association (MBA)
• Sir Alister Hardy Foundation for Marine Science (SAHFOS)
• Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory (POL)
• Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS)
• Sea Mammal Research Unit (SMRU)

Oceans2025 provides funding to three national marine facilities, which provide services to the wider UK marine community, in addition to the Oceans 2025 community. These facilities are:

• British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC), hosted at POL
• Permanent Service for Mean Sea Level (PSMSL), hosted at POL
• Culture Collection of Algae and Protozoa (CCAP), hosted at SAMS

The NERC-run Strategic Ocean Funding Initiative (SOFI) provides additional support to the programme by funding additional research projects and studentships that closely complement the Oceans 2025 programme, primarily through universities.

What is the programme about?

Oceans 2025 sets out to address some key challenges that face the UK as a result of a changing marine environment. The research funded through the programme sets out to increase understanding of the size, nature and impacts of these changes, with the aim to:

• improve knowledge of how the seas behave, not just now but in the future;
• help assess what that might mean for the Earth system and for society;
• assist in developing sustainable solutions for the management of marine resources for future generations;
• enhance the research capabilities and facilities available for UK marine science.

In order to address these aims there are nine science themes supported by the Oceans 2025 programme:

• Climate, circulation and sea level (Theme 1)
• Marine biogeochemical cycles (Theme 2)
• Shelf and coastal processes (Theme 3)
• Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning (Theme 4)
• Continental margins and deep ocean (Theme 5)
• Sustainable marine resources (Theme 6)
• Technology development (Theme 8)
• Next generation ocean prediction (Theme 9)
• Integration of sustained observations in the marine environment (Theme 10)

In the original programme proposal there was a theme on health and human impacts (Theme 7). The elements of this Theme have subsequently been included in Themes 3 and 9.

When is the programme active?

The programme started in April 2007 with funding for 5 years.

Brief summary of the programme fieldwork/data

Programme fieldwork and data collection are to be achieved through:

• physical, biological and chemical parameters sampling throughout the North and South Atlantic during collaborative research cruises aboard NERC's research vessels RRS Discovery, RRS James Cook and RRS James Clark Ross;
• the Continuous Plankton Recorder being deployed by SAHFOS in the North Atlantic and North Pacific on 'ships of opportunity';
• physical parameters measured and relayed in near real-time by fixed moorings and ARGO floats;
• coastal and shelf sea observatory data (Liverpool Bay Coastal Observatory (LBCO) and Western Channel Observatory (WCO)) using the RV Prince Madog and RV Quest.

The data is to be fed into models for validation and future projections. Greater detail can be found in the Theme documents.

Oceans 2025 Theme 10, Sustained Observation Activity 11: Liverpool Bay and Irish Sea Coastal Observatory

Sustained, systematic observations of the ocean and continental shelf seas at appropriate time and space scales allied to numerical models are key to understanding and prediction. In shelf seas these observations address issues as fundamental as 'what is the capacity of shelf seas to absorb change?' encompassing the impacts of climate change, biological productivity and diversity, sustainable management, pollution and public health, safety at sea and extreme events. Advancing understanding of coastal processes to use and manage these resources better is challenging; important controlling processes occur over a broad range of spatial and temporal scales which cannot be simultaneously studied solely with satellite or ship-based platforms.

Considerable effort has been spent by the Proudman Oceangraphic Laboratory (POL) in the years 2001 - 2006 in setting up an integrated observational and now-cast modelling system in Liverpool Bay (see Figure), with the recent POL review stating the observatory was seen as a leader in its field and a unique 'selling' point of the laboratory. Cost benefit analysis (IACMST, 2004) shows that benefits really start to accrue after 10 years. In 2007 - 2012 exploitation of (i) the time series being acquired, (ii) the model-data synthesis and (iii) the increasingly available quantities of real-time data (e.g. river flows) can be carried out through Sustained Observation Activity (SO) 11, to provide an integrated assessment and short term forecasts of the coastal ocean state.

Overall Aims and Purpose of SO 11

• To continue and enlarge the scope of the existing coastal observatory in Liverpool Bay to routinely monitor the northern Irish Sea
• To develop the synthesis of measurements and models in the coastal ocean to optimize measurement arrays and forecast products. Driving forward shelf seas' operational oceanography with the direct objective of improving the national forecasting capability, expressed through links to the National Centre for Ocean Forecasting (NCOF)
• To exploit the long time-series of observations and model outputs to: a) identify the roles of climate and anthropogenic inputs on the coastal ocean's physical and biological functioning (including impacts of nutrient discharges, offshore renewable energy installations and fishing activity) taking into consideration the importance of events versus mean storms / waves, river discharge / variable salinity stratification / horizontal gradients; b) predict the impacts of climate change scenarios; and c) provide new insights to Irish Sea dynamics for variables either with seasonal cycles and interannual variability, or which show weak or no seasonal cycles
• To provide and maintain a 'laboratory' within which a variety of observational and model experiments can be undertaken (Oceans 2025 Themes 3, 6, 8, 9), including capture of extreme events
• Demonstrate the value of an integrated approach in assessment and forecasting
• Demonstrate the coastal observatory as a tool for marine management strategies through collaboration with the Environment Agency (EA), Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), Joint Nature Conservation Commmittee (JNCC), English Nature (EN), Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD), and Local Authorities, providing management information pertinent to policy (e.g. Water Framework Directive)

Measurement and Modelling Activities

• East Mooring Site: Bottom frame with full suite of physical measurements (high frequency Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP), conductivity, temperature, turbidity and fluorescence), a Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS) directional wavebuoy, and a CEFAS Smartbuoy collecting surface properties including salinity, temperature, turbidity, nutrients, irradiance and chlorophyll. All transmit data in real-time via Orbcomm. The Smartbuoy also collects daily water samples.
• West Mooring Site: Bottom frame with full suite of physical measurements (high frequency ADCP, conductivity, temperature, turbidity and fluorescence), CEFAS Smartbuoy.
• Spatial Survey: Four - six week intervals (determined by biofouling of optical sensors). Spatial surveys comprise of vertical profiles of CTD, suspended particulate material (SPM), some bed sediment sampling and surface and bed nutrients, phytoplankton, zooplankton.
• Ferry: The Birkenhead - Belfast ferry samples near surface (5 m depth) temperature, salinity, turbidity, chlorophyll, with data transmitted by Orbcomm. The route is scientifically varied passing through six completely different hydrodynamic regions, which significantly impact on their ecological function.
• Tide gauges: Real-time data are obtained from tide gauges operated by Mersey Docks and Harbour Company (MDHC) and the UK tide gauge network.
• Satellite imagery: Weekly composite satellite data, Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) sea surface temperature (SST) and ocean colour (chlorophyll and suspended sediment), are provided by the Remote Sensing Data Analysis Service (RSDAS) based at Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML).
• HF radar: A phased array HF radar system (a 12-16MHz WERA HF radar) measuring surface currents and waves with maximum range 75km at a resolution of 4km for sea surface currents and for 2-D wave spectra.
• Meteorology station: With web camera, located on Hilbre Island at the mouth of the Dee Estuary
• Operational models: The Coastal Observatory uses Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory Coastal Ocean Modelling System (POLCOMS), which is part of Oceans 2025 Theme 9.

More detailed information on this Work Package is available at pages 32 - 35 of the official Oceans 2025 Theme 10 document: Oceans 2025 Theme 10

Weblink: http://www.oceans2025.org/

References:

IACMST., 2004. The Economics of Sustained Marine Measurements. IACMST Information Document, N0.11, Southampton: IACMST, 96 pp

Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory Coastal Observatory

The Coastal Observatory was established by Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory as a coastal zone real time observing and monitoring system. The main objective is to understand a coastal sea's response both to natural forcing and to the consequences of human activity. Near real-time measurements will be integrated with coupled models into a pre-operational coastal prediction system whose results will be displayed on the World Wide Web.

The Observatory is expected to grow and evolve as resources and technology allow, all the while building up long time series. A site selection pilot study was carried out in September 2001 and the Observatory became operational in August 2002.

The site is located in Liverpool Bay and is subject to typical coastal sea processes, with strong tides, occasional large storm surges and waves, freshwater input, stable and unstable stratification, high suspended sediment concentration and biogeochemical interaction. Measurements and monitoring will focus on the impacts of storms, variations in river discharge (especially the Mersey), seasonality and blooms in Liverpool Bay.

A variety of methods will be used to obtain measurements, including:

1. Moored instruments for in situ time series of currents, temperature and salinity profiles, and surface waves and meteorology. It is hoped that turbidity and chlorophyll measurements will be made at another site as the Observatory progresses;
2. The Cefas Smartbuoy for surface properties such as nutrients and chlorophyll, starting late 2002;
3. R.V. Prince Madog to carry out spatial surveys and service moorings;
4. Instrumented ferries for near surface temperature, salinity, turbidity, chlorophyll and nutrients. The first route will be Liverpool to Douglas, Isle of Man, starting late 2002;
5. Drifters for surface currents and properties such as temperature and salinity, starting in 2004;
6. Tide gauges, with sensors for meteorology, waves, temperature and salinity, where appropriate;
7. Meteorological data from Bidston Observatory and Hilbre Island, HF radar and tide gauge sites;
8. Shore-based HF radar measuring waves and surface currents out to a range of 50 km, starting in 2003;
9. Satellite data, with infrared for sea surface temperature and visible for chlorophyll and suspended sediment.

The partners currently involved with the project are listed below:

• Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory
• British Oceanographic Data Centre
• UK Meteorological Office
• Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science
• Environment Agency
• Liverpool University and Port Erin Marine Laboratory
• Bangor University School of Ocean Sciences
• National Oceanography Centre Southampton
• Department of Agriculture and Rural Development in Northern Ireland

A summary of Coastal Observatory cruises to date on R.V. Prince Madog is given in the table below:

Data Activity or Cruise Information

Data Activity

Coastal Observatory HF Radar data activity document

A WERA radar system was deployed as part of the Coastal Observatory project. It consisted of two radar sources pointing out over the Irish Sea measuring surface currents and waves over an area of 1600 km². The master radar site was at Llandulas/ Abergele, North Wales facing northwards and the slave site was at Formby, Merseyside facing roughly west-south-west. Measurements of the sea surface were made every 20 minutes by sending out pulses and measuring the response signal after reflection from the sea surface. Each site consists of four transmit antennae set out in a square and 16 receive antennae arranged in a straight line parallel to the shoreline. The two set of antennae are usually spaced about 0.5 km apart. A combination of data from the two sites enables calculation of the current and wave parameters for each grid cell.

Site descriptions

The cell resolution of the data supplied is approximately 0.06 degrees longitude by 0.036 degrees latitude. The HF Radar grid can be seen in the image below:

Operational frequencies

Related Data Activity activities are detailed in Appendix 1

Fixed Station Information

No Fixed Station Information held for the Series

BODC Quality Control Flags

The following single character qualifying flags may be associated with one or more individual parameters with a data cycle:

SeaDataNet Quality Control Flags

The following single character qualifying flags may be associated with one or more individual parameters with a data cycle:

Appendix 1: COBS Liverpool Bay HF Radar

Related series for this Data Activity are presented in the table below. Further information can be found by following the appropriate links.

If you are interested in these series, please be aware we offer a multiple file download service. Should your credentials be insufficient for automatic download, the service also offers a referral to our Enquiries Officer who may be able to negotiate access.