SO503 Spring 2010

Drifting Buoys Lab

We will make the following assumptions about the drifter data:

• The times are UTC
• The values given for "salinity" are in fact conductivity.

Go to  http://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/tide_pred.html and determine how fast the tide travels up the Severn River.  You can find the time corrections to the reference station.  You should use at least three points.

Go to http://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/station_retrieve.shtml?type=Historic+Tide+Data and get the actual tide record for Annapolis for the duration of your drifter record.

There are directions in the help file for MICRODEM; insure that you have 2010.3.24 or newer.  The directions will be under Tutorials and labs, Oceanography, Bouys/drifters.

You are to produce and turn in:

• A KMZ file with an animation of the trajectory of the drifter.  This will use an OYSTER icon which you will create.
• A DBF file with the trajectory of the drifter.
• A written report with:
  • A map with the trajectory.  This map will have a labeled lat/long graticule and a scale bar.
  • A graph with the tide during the period of your data file.
  • A discussion of the tide delay in the Severn River, and where your drifter was at each high and low tide
  • A map showing the temperature readings from the drifter, or computed speeds if there are no temperatures.  You are to discuss the patterns you see, and what you think accounts for the pattern.
  • A graph of time versus temperature or speed.