Hydrographic data from the OPTOMA program OPTOMA20 OPTOMA20 P 16 March 1986 OPTOMA20 Leg MI 24 March - 3 April 1986 OPTOMA20 Leg MII 7 - 15 April 1986 OPTOMA20 Leg D 25 April - 6 May 1986

THe OPTOMA (Ocean Prediction Through Observation, Modeling, and Analysis) Program a joint NPS/Harvard program sponsored by ONR, seeks to understand the mesoscale (fronts, eddies, and jets) variability and dynamics of the California Current System and to determine the scientific limits to practical mesoscale ocean forecasting. To help carry out the aims of this project, a series of cruises has been planned in two subdomains, NOCAL and CENCAL, Three cruises were undertaken during March, April and May 1986: two (Legs Ml and Mll) on the NOAA ship Mc AUTHOR, one (Leg D) on the USNS DE STEIGUER. In addition, one P-3 overflight (Leg P) was made one week before the first cruise. Leg P, on 16 March, sampled a domain approximately 240km square centered about 280 km off the coast between Pt. Arena and Cape Mendocino, with additional transects from and to San Francisco, Leg Ml was carried out from 24 March to 3 April (Figure 8), Leg Mll from 7 to 15 April (Figure 20), and Leg D from 25 April to 6 May (Figure 32). Each cruise sampled the same domain as Leg P. On these cruises, oceanographic stations were occupied at approximately 18km along each trackPrepared for: Office of Naval Research Environmental Sciences Directoratehttp://archive.org/details/hydrographicdata008cianN0001486WR24027NAApproved for public release; distribution is unlimited

Hydrographic data from the OPTOMA program OPTOMA21 7 - 20 July 1986

The OPTOMA (Ocean Prediction Through Observation, Modeling and Analysis) program, a joint NPS/Harvard program sponsored by ONR, seeks to understand the mesoscale (fronts, eddies, and jets) variability and dynamics of the California current systems and to determine the scientific limits to practical mesoscale ocean forecasting. To help carry out the aims of this project a series of cruises has been planned two subdomains, nocal and cencal. Optoma21 was a multidisciplinary study which took place from 7 to 20 July 1986 aboard the R/V Point Sur in the nocal domain. In addition to conducting a quasi- synoptic CTD/XBT mapping of a cool anomaly, meandering jet, and eddy system, measurements were made to determine: 1) the fine scale variability of the upper ocean mass and velocity fields; 2) the upper ocean nutrient, optical and phytoplankton fields; and 3) the structure of the zooplankton population. In this report, the CTD/XBT data are presentedresearch project "Ocean Prediction Through Observation, Modeling and Analysis" sponsored by the Physical Oceanography Program of the Office of Naval Research under Program Element 61153N.http://archive.org/details/hydrographicda20jul86wittN000146WR24027NAApproved for public release; distribution is unlimited

Hydrographic data from the OPTOMA Program: OPTOMA12, 8-18 October 1984, OPTOMA13, 22 October-3 November 1984, OPTOMA13P, 27 October 1984, OPTOMA14, 3-14 November 1984

The three cruises, OPTOMA12, OPTOMA13, and 0PT0MA14, and one AXBT flight, 0PT0MA13P, were under taken in October and November, 1984. This report presents the hydrographic data, acquired by XBT, AXBT and CTD casts, from the cruises and the flight."Ocean Prediction Through Observations, Modeling and Analysis" sponsored by the Physical Oceanography Program of the Office of Naval Research under Program Element 61153N.http://archive.org/details/hydrographicdata012wittN0001484NR24501NAApproved for public release; distribution is unlimited

Hydrographic data from the OPTOMA Program: OPTOMA11, 5-June-5 August, 1984

The six cruises and one aircraft flight comprising OPTOMA11 were undertaken in June, July and August 1984 to sample two subdomains of the California Current. This report presents the hydrographic data, acquired by XBT, AXBT and CTD casts, from the cruises and the flight.Research project "Ocean Prediction Through Observations, Modeling and Analysis" sponsored by the Physical Oceanography Program of the Office of Naval Research under Program Element 61153N.http://archive.org/details/hydrographicdata011wittN000148WR24051NAApproved for public release; distribution is unlimited

From Sea to Sea: Canada's Three Oceans of Biodiversity

Evaluating and understanding biodiversity in marine ecosystems are both necessary and challenging for conservation. This paper compiles and summarizes current knowledge of the diversity of marine taxa in Canada's three oceans while recognizing that this compilation is incomplete and will change in the future. That Canada has the longest coastline in the world and incorporates distinctly different biogeographic provinces and ecoregions (e.g., temperate through ice-covered areas) constrains this analysis. The taxonomic groups presented here include microbes, phytoplankton, macroalgae, zooplankton, benthic infauna, fishes, and marine mammals. The minimum number of species or taxa compiled here is 15,988 for the three Canadian oceans. However, this number clearly underestimates in several ways the total number of taxa present. First, there are significant gaps in the published literature. Second, the diversity of many habitats has not been compiled for all taxonomic groups (e.g., intertidal rocky shores, deep sea), and data compilations are based on short-term, directed research programs or longer-term monitoring activities with limited spatial resolution. Third, the biodiversity of large organisms is well known, but this is not true of smaller organisms. Finally, the greatest constraint on this summary is the willingness and capacity of those who collected the data to make it available to those interested in biodiversity meta-analyses. Confirmation of identities and intercomparison of studies are also constrained by the disturbing rate of decline in the number of taxonomists and systematists specializing on marine taxa in Canada. This decline is mostly the result of retirements of current specialists and to a lack of training and employment opportunities for new ones. Considering the difficulties encountered in compiling an overview of biogeographic data and the diversity of species or taxa in Canada's three oceans, this synthesis is intended to serve as a biodiversity baseline for a new program on marine biodiversity, the Canadian Healthy Ocean Network. A major effort needs to be undertaken to establish a complete baseline of Canadian marine biodiversity of all taxonomic groups, especially if we are to understand and conserve this part of Canada's natural heritage

OPTOMA Program interim report: The Airborne Ocean Thermal Structure Mapping Project, February, 1983 through February, 1985

Portions of this report were presented at the Fall Annual Meeting, AGU, San Francisco, 4 December, 19S4.The Ocean Prediction Through Observation, Modeling and Analysis (OPTOMA) Program goals are to develop an ocean descriptive predictive system for studying and forecasting the evolution of ocean mesoscale features and the California Current System. Attainment of these goals requires the establishment of a broad-base ocean observing and monitoring system that includes, hydrographic research cruises, moored arrays, and remotely sensed data, etc. To forecast the evolution of the oceanic flow field, the observing system must include a means of obtaining real-time, synoptic maps for the initialization and verification of the dynamic model(s) used. P3 flights to deploy airborne expendable bathythermographs are a clear choice for frequent mappings. Since Feb. 1983 six OPTOMA missions have been flown. A total of 325 AXBTs have been successfully deployed off the northern and central California coasts. Data analysis reinforce recent discoveries about the character of the California Current System: the current regime is highly variable in nature and is comprised of cool anomalies, mesoscale eddies, 'squirts' and jets, current filaments and fronts. An airborne digital data acquisition system, built around an HP9816 microprocessor and a Sippican MK9 digitizing unit, digitizes the AXBT audio signal, then stores the profiles on diskettePrepared for: Office of Naval Research Environmental Sciences Directorate (Code 420)http://archive.org/details/optomaprogramint008coltN0001484WR24051Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited

Quasi-Operational Coastal Ocean Nowcast/Forecast Systems

For several years, quasi-operational (i.e., real-time, semi-autonomous, research-mode) nowcast/forecast systems have been run in two quite different regimes: (1) the Straits of Florida/East Florida Shelf, which includes the Florida Current, and (2) Prince William Sound, Alaska, which is a small, semi-enclosed sea with two major straits. For both regimes, the Princeton Ocean Model (POM) has been implemented with mesoscale resolution. Both implementations are forced by mesoscale numerical weather predictions, the US Navy's operational global ocean model (NCOM, which assimilates satellite altimetric sea surface height anomalies, MCSST, ARGO float temperature and salinity profiles, etc.) for open boundary conditions, and four diurnal and four semi-diurnal tides, also imposed on the open boundaries. Real-time observations are mainly used for model skill assessment, as a prelude to data assimilation. One of the benefits of this activity has been new understanding derived from diagnostics studies made possible by these numerical simulations. For example, the Florida Current Frontal (cyclonic) Eddies, which form weekly in the cyclonic shear zone along the shelfbreak, have been more fully characterized than had been possible by observations alone, and the prevalence of three-layered monthly mean flow in the straits of Prince William Sound has been determined in a highly variable regime that is difficult to observe comprehensively