Wireless Sensor Networks for Oceanographic Monitoring: A Systematic Review

Monitoring of the marine environment has come to be a field of scientific interest in the last ten years. The instruments used in this work have ranged from small-scale sensor networks to complex observation systems. Among small-scale networks, Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are a highly attractive solution in that they are easy to deploy, operate and dismantle and are relatively inexpensive. The aim of this paper is to identify, appraise, select and synthesize all high quality research evidence relevant to the use of WSNs in oceanographic monitoring. The literature is systematically reviewed to offer an overview of the present state of this field of study and identify the principal resources that have been used to implement networks of this kind. Finally, this article details the challenges and difficulties that have to be overcome if these networks are to be successfully deployed

Linking science and management in the adoption of sensor network technology in the Great Barrier Reef coast, Australia

Coastal and reef policy decisions and management programs require research to address current and\ud emerging issues, to detect trends in key environmental variables and to help evaluate the effectiveness\ud of management strategies. The technology and infrastructure components are now well developed and\ud understood, but the useful application of sensor network data and efficient delivery of real-time information\ud still needs improvement to better incorporate management needs and priorities. This paper aims to\ud contribute to the current understanding of the adoption of wireless technology in research and practice,\ud by identifying the main drivers and barriers to the adaptive deployment of an environmental sensor network\ud along the Great Barrier Reef coast. Specifically, it addresses the extent to which the deployment of\ud sensor networks and the delivery of real-time data can best suit managers’ and decision makers’ needs by\ud providing timely and useful spatial data. Study findings indicate that, although researchers and managers\ud ask significantly different questions requiring real-time spatial data, there is great potential and interest\ud from both science and management for continuous automatic monitoring of environmental parameters.\ud Some of the key research and management needs that the sensor network technology should address\ud include measuring water (marine) quality at biological monitoring sites, water circulation patterns and\ud flood plume water quality, gathering long-term data on turbidity, photosynthetically active radiation\ud and chlorophyll a, and developing uniform standards for the provision of data to networks