Trees C., Pennucci G.
One of the principle advantages of gliders is that they provide high-resolution measurements at small temporal and spatial scales. They also autonomously operate 24/7 under a variety of weather and sea-state conditions, they increase sample measurement densities (shipboard sampling 87 profiles day-1 as compared to 665 profiles day-1 from a glider), they are relatively low cost, easily re-locatable and finally, they have low power requirements for extended deployment periods. The goals of this study were (1) to determine the radiometric uncertainty of downwelling irradiance (Ed) measurements made from gliders, (2) to apply the Submerged Remote Sensing (SRS) technique for calculating mean K’s (average K over some depth interval from just below the surface to the sensor depth) from validated glider Ed data and (3) to invert mean K’s to local K’s (K over some smaller depth increment ~1–2 m to generate a vertical profile of K) under varying incident solar fluxes (cloud cover/atmospheric conditions).
