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Free‐floating drifter for photochemical studies in the water column
Author(s) -
Kieber David J.,
Yocis Brian H.,
Mopper Kenneth
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
limnology and oceanography
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.7
H-Index - 197
eISSN - 1939-5590
pISSN - 0024-3590
DOI - 10.4319/lo.1997.42.8.1829
Subject(s) - drifter , seawater , buoy , downwelling , water column , oceanography , environmental science , quartz , upwelling , geology , meteorology , physics , lagrangian , paleontology , mathematical physics
A free‐floating drifter was designed to directly determine in situ photochemical production rates, photolysis rates, and light fluxes in seawater. This drifter consisted of six trays that were suspended in series from a single buoy line. The trays were constructed so that the attached quartz vessels, containing filtered seawater, were exposed to both downwelling and upwelling irradiation. The quartz vessels were sealed at both ends with ribbed TFE Teflon stoppers that permitted multiple subsampling without introduction of a headspace. The free‐floating drifter was used to study photochemical processes in antarctic waters. It performed well during 12–15‐h deployments, even in rough seas with sustained winds between 15 and 26 m s −1 . Although not tested here, the drifter should perform equally well in the study of photochemical processes in freshwater environments.