Meteorological, biological, and hydrographic data collected from Cedar Point Fishing Pier, Cedar Point, Alabama from 04/04/2008 - 12/31/2013 (NODC Accession 0117373)

Abstract: Dauphin Island Sea Lab and the Mobile Bay National Estuary Program have partnered with the Alabama Department of Conservation and Mobile County to provide real-time meteorological and hydrographic data from Cedar Point, AL. Near real-time data are available in a user-friendly format at www.mymobilebay.com. Informative pop-ups describe each parameter and graphs of each may be displayed for the visitor to the website. Researchers may download the data in a spreadsheet format for further analysis.

Purpose: The value of coastal observing systems is recognized by the U.S. Congress, the National Ocean Partnership Program, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration. Recent reports by the Pew Oceans Commission and U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy have decried the lack of information from near coastal waters on which to base management decisions and recommended monitoring programs linked to strong research. Reasons for continuous, real-time observations of meteorological and hydrographic parameters include (1) continuous characterization of spatial and temporal patterns of change in water quality, (2) development of a permanent record of significant and human caused changes in environmental indicators over time, and (3) support for research activities through the availability of consistent, scientifically valid data. An additional benefit of real-time observation is the potential for the public to track and learn about water quality conditions. Many coastal dwellers are uninformed about conditions in nearby estuaries because they do not have access to current information about parameters such as water temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen levels and water level and they may fail to appreciate the complexity of interactions in estuarine ecosystems.

摘要：道芬岛海洋实验室（Dauphin Island Sea Lab）与莫比尔湾国家河口项目（Mobile Bay National Estuary Program）已与阿拉巴马州自然资源部（Alabama Department of Conservation）和莫比尔县（Mobile County）合作，为用户提供来自阿拉巴马州锡达角（Cedar Point, AL）的实时气象与水文数据。该数据集的准实时数据可通过www.mymobilebay.com以用户友好的格式获取。网站访客可通过信息丰富的弹窗了解各参数详情，并查看对应参数的可视化图表。研究人员可下载电子表格格式的原始数据用于后续分析。

研究目的：美国国会、国家海洋合作项目（National Ocean Partnership Program）、美国环境保护署（Environmental Protection Agency）以及美国国家海洋和大气管理局（National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration）均认可海岸观测系统的价值。皮尤海洋委员会（Pew Oceans Commission）与美国海洋政策委员会（U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy）近期发布的报告指出，近海水域缺乏支撑管理决策所需的信息，并呼吁建立与扎实研究相结合的监测计划。对气象与水文参数进行持续实时观测的意义在于：其一，持续刻画水质变化的时空分布特征；其二，建立环境指标随时间发生的显著变化（含人为影响）的永久性记录；其三，通过提供一致且符合科学规范的有效数据，为科研活动提供支撑。实时观测的另一项优势在于，可让公众及时追踪并了解水质状况。许多沿海居民对邻近河口的环境状况一无所知，因为他们无法获取水温、盐度、溶解氧含量以及水位等参数的实时信息，因而难以理解河口生态系统中各类相互作用的复杂性。