Argo (profiling floats)
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| Argo (profiling floats) | |
|---|---|
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| Name | Argo |
| Type | Autonomous profiling float array |
| Operator | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Copernicus Programme, Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, Scripps Institution of Oceanography |
| Established | 2000s |
| Area served | Global oceans |
Argo (profiling floats)
Argo is an international array of autonomous oceanography profiling floats that measure subsurface temperature, salinity, and other oceanographic properties. Developed through collaborations among agencies such as National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, European Space Agency, Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, and research institutions like Scripps Institution of Oceanography and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Argo provides near-real-time data for ocean and climate studies. The program supports operational forecasting systems used by organizations including Met Office, Bureau of Meteorology (Australia), and Météo-France.
Overview
Argo emerged from scientific planning in the late 1990s involving groups such as World Climate Research Programme, Global Climate Observing System, and Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission to address gaps identified by IPCC assessments and the Climate Variability and Predictability community. The network comprises thousands of profiling floats working alongside platforms like TAO/TRITON, PIRATA, and SOOP to sample the upper 2000 meters of the Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Indian Ocean, Southern Ocean, and Arctic Ocean. Operational coordination involves national bodies including NOAA, CNES, JAMSTEC, CSIRO, and regional programs such as Euro-Argo and Argo Canada.
Design and Operation
Typical Argo floats are based on designs developed by manufacturers and laboratories including NKE Instrumentation, Teledyne Webb Research, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and Fondation de la Mer. Floats cycle on programmable schedules, using hydraulic or piston-driven buoyancy engines influenced by work at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution to ascend and descend between parking depths and profiling depths. Communication leverages satellite services such as Argos (satellite system) and Iridium Communications to transmit data to processing centers operated by agencies like NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information and ECMWF. Deployment methods include cruises by research vessels like RRS James Cook, RV Knorr, and RV Investigator, as well as aircraft and containerized shipments coordinated with institutions such as Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory.
Sensor Payload and Data Collected
Standard Argo payloads include sensors for temperature, salinity (via conductivity), and pressure, built using sensor technologies advanced at facilities like Scripps Institution of Oceanography and Ifremer. Enhanced floats incorporate oxygen sensors developed in collaboration with MBARI, biogeochemical sensors for nitrate and pH from groups such as University of Washington and University of Connecticut, and bio-optical packages informed by research at University of California, Santa Barbara. Data variables feed into datasets used by modeling centers including NOAA Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory, ECMWF, and Met Office Hadley Centre.
Deployment and Global Array
The global Argo array reached an operational target of about 3,000 profiling floats through international coordination by panels including Argo Steering Team, national programs like Australian Bureau of Meteorology, and European initiatives such as Euro-Argo ERIC. Deployment strategies respond to scientific priorities from groups like SCOR and CLIVAR, with targeted programs for regions including the Southern Ocean and marginal seas coordinated with institutions such as British Antarctic Survey and University of Cape Town. Complementary efforts include deep Argo developments from French National Centre for Scientific Research collaborations and ice-capable floats adapted by Alfred Wegener Institute for polar deployments.
Data Processing and Distribution
Argo data are subject to real-time and delayed-mode quality control routines established by panels affiliated with International Oceanographic Data and Information Exchange and processed at data assembly centers including Ifremer, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, CSIR, and JMA. Data streams are assimilated into operational analyses and reanalyses produced by centers such as NOAA NCEP, ECMWF, NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, and Met Office using assimilation systems that build on research from GFDL and UK Met Office Hadley Centre. Open data policies aligned with Group on Earth Observations and GOOS principles ensure wide access by researchers at universities like MIT, Princeton University, University of Oxford, and agencies including ESA and NASA.
Scientific and Operational Applications
Argo observations underpin studies of ocean heat content contributing to IPCC reports and climate monitoring by WMO and NOAA. Data support improvements in seasonal to decadal prediction systems developed by ECMWF, CFSv2, and institutions such as IRI and inform sea level studies relevant to Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change analyses and regional agencies like NOAA Sea Level Rise Viewer. Biological and biogeochemical extensions inform research at MBARI, Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory, and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution on carbon cycling, oxygen minimum zones studied by teams at Scripps Institution of Oceanography and Ifremer, and ecosystem implications considered by PICES and ICES. Operational maritime services from Met Office Marine, NOAA Coast Survey, and national hydrographic offices also leverage Argo inputs.
Limitations and Challenges
Argo faces challenges including uneven spatial coverage in high-latitude regions and enclosed seas, sensor drifts documented by groups such as IFREMER and Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and logistical constraints tied to ship time used by institutions like WHOI and KOPRI. Sustaining the array requires funding commitments from agencies including NOAA, EU Horizon 2020, JAMSTEC, and national research councils, and technological advances for deep and under-ice operations driven by collaborations with Alfred Wegener Institute and JAMSTEC. Data quality control, real-time telemetry via Iridium Communications and Argos (satellite system), and integration with models at ECMWF and NOAA remain active areas of international coordination through bodies like Argo Steering Team and GOOS.