Sofar Ocean to deploy Drift Marine Buoys in national waters for wave measurement and current estimation.

IFOP-SOFAR Strategic Alliance allows the deployment of smart buoys to measure waves, temperature, currents and wind

CHILE
Friday, May 07, 2021, 23:00 (GMT + 9)

The Fisheries Development Institute (IFOP) made a strategic alliance with Sofar Ocean (Sofar) to deploy Drift Marine Buoys in national waters to measure waves and estimate currents.

The first shipment of 10 buoys was received at IFOP's offices in Valparaíso, by Hernán Reyes, chief of the Oceanography section, who explained “then they will be shipped and deployed on the Abate Molina Research Vessel. The buoys are part of an oceanographic study sponsored by the US Office of Naval Research (ONR) and once launched, Sofar will share wave and wind data from its global network of buoys "

These buoys will be deployed along the Chilean coast in the Acoustic and Bioceanographic cruises carried out by the Department of Oceanography (DOMA) and the Department of Direct Assessments of IFOP's Fisheries Research Division.

Photo: courtesy Sofar

These drift buoys will send mainly wave and trajectory data using satellite communication and are part of the actions that are developed by IFOP for the monitoring of Climate Change with the aim of contributing to the sustainability of fisheries and aquaculture.

Brad Parks, Vice President of Olaunu and consultant with EDF, explained that “the innovative characteristics of the miniaturized components, the sensors as well as the materials with which they are built, make these buoys optimal to contribute to the data requirements for research. national and international associated with warning and monitoring systems for Climate Change. This type of low-cost, scientific-quality instrument will provide data that will allow monitoring the state of the ocean's surface as well as feeding and validating numerical models that generate future projections ”.

Sebastien Boulay, Sofar's Director of Business Development, indicated that “these buoys will be part of Sofar Ocean's real-time ocean intelligence platform, which is powered by thousands of offshore and coastal drift buoys that cover the oceans of the world and that provide data on waves, wind, temperature, currents in real time ”.

Dr. Letelier, head of DOMA of the Fisheries Development Institute, revealed that “the particular indicators derived from the data from these buoys in the South East Pacific will contribute unique data to the Climate Change data monitoring and visualization system, prot otype system built on the basis of the project "Interoperable Information System, which systematizes and integrates fishing, aquaculture and climate change data".

Sergio Palma Silva, Senior Manager of EDF Océanos Chile, declared that “this strategic alliance allows incorporating new and unique information to the climate change monitoring system that IFOP is developing and that together are a key national piece in the Alert, Prediction System and Observation (SAPO) for fisheries resilient to climate change in the Great Marine Ecosystem of the Humboldt Current which, coordinated by EDF, is being built by IMARPE of Peru, INP of Ecuador and IFOP of Chile; with the aim of positioning Science as a key actor for decision-making and in the development of various public policies regarding the management of fisheries and alternatives for mitigation and adaptation to climate change, where the Systems technological are part of the social and economic challenges "

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