The Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) of the National Science Foundation will construct a network of instruments, undersea cables, and instrumented moorings that spans the Western Hemisphere. This network of observatories will measure physical, chemical, geological, and biological phenomena in carefully selected key coastal, regional, and global areas. A common cyberinfrastructure architecture
will integrate the observatories' thousands of instruments, tens of thousands of users, and terabytes of data through the Internet. Educational elements that are under development will reach a global audience. The cabled high power (up to 200 kW) and bandwidth (up to 240 Gb/s) component of the OOI is called the Regional Scale Nodes (RSN). This network spans the Juan de Fuca tectonic plate, and includes cabled arrays of sensors on the seafloor and throughout the water column. Implementation of the Regional Scale Nodes is led by the University of Washington. Shallow-water, cabled coastal sites off the Oregon coast are shared by the University of Washington and Oregon State University; the UW manages the cable technology. Coastal studies in the Pacific will be facilitated by an array of cabled and uncabled moorings across the continental shelf off Newport, Oregon, and Grays Harbor, Washington. Implementation of the Coastal Scale Nodes is overseen by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and its partner, Oregon State University. Global studies will be facilitated by moorings at four sites, one each in the Pacific near the Queen Charlotte Islands, the Southern Ocean near Chile, the Atlantic near Greenland, and the Atlantic off Argentina. Implementation of the Global Scale Nodes is overseen by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and Scripps Institution of Oceanography. High-bandwidth data, high-definition video and digital still imagery will be streamed live from the cabled observatory via the Internet to researchers, educators, and the public. Data from uncabled moorings will be sent to satellites and then to the internet. The Cyberinfrastructure component of the OOI will facilitate use, storage, and visualization of the myriad data sets. Implementation of the cyberinfrastructure architecture is led by the University of California, San Diego. In concert this transformative infrastructure with real-time and adaptive capabilities will provide unprecedented opportunities for scientists, educators, and the public to participate in cutting-edge oceanography. The Education and Public Engagement component of the OOI will help facilitate use of this infrastructure by a diverse national and international community. The Ocean Observatories Initiative is managed and coordinated by the OOI Program Office at the Consortium for Ocean Leadership in Washington, D.C.
