Water temperature, salinity, and optical properties from an Acrobat towed vehicle from bi-weekly grids conducted at Palmer Station, Antarctica in 2020

This data is from a towed instrument called an ACROBAT. The Acrobat is a winged instrument platform that cycles between the surface and 60 m as it is towed behind a ship traveling at speeds of 5 to 8 knots. It is equipped with a SeaBird 49 FastCAT CTD (temperature, conductivity, and pressure) and a Wetlabs EcoPUCK optical sensor (chlorophyll a, colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM), and backscatter). The ACROBAT system has been used to map submesoscale features (fronts, eddies and filaments) and provides a real-time data feed via a faired Kevlar cable to the vehicle operator. The ACROBAT enables adaptive sampling of features of interest and detailed mapping of the upper ocean without aliasing due to tides. Bi-Weekly sampling survey grids were conducted out of Palmer Station through the use of the USAP RHIB platform.

本数据集源自一款名为ACROBAT的拖曳式探测设备。该ACROBAT平台为翼型探测载体，会在海面与60米水深之间往复运动，其搭载母船的航速为5至8节。平台搭载有赛博德（SeaBird）49型FastCAT温盐深仪（可测量温度、电导率与压力），以及Wetlabs EcoPUCK光学传感器，可检测叶绿素a、有色溶解有机物（colored dissolved organic matter, CDOM）以及后向散射信号。ACROBAT系统已被用于次中尺度特征（锋面、涡旋与丝状流）的测绘工作，并可通过流线型凯夫拉缆绳向操控人员实时传输数据。该平台可对目标特征开展自适应采样，并实现上层海洋的精细测绘，且不受潮汐混叠效应的影响。本研究依托美国南极项目（United States Antarctic Program, USAP）的刚性充气艇（Rigid Hull Inflatable Boat, RHIB）平台，在帕尔默站周边海域开展了每两周一次的采样勘测网格作业。