Slope Base 3000 m PN-1A

Moorings off the Oregon Margin
Slope Base 3000 m Instrument Table (PN1A)

Description of instruments that will be deployed at Primary Node 1A

Endurance Array and Slope Base Mooring Image

Endurance Array and Slope Base Mooring Image

The mooring at the Slope Base (PN1A) is situated adjacent to the coastal continental slope at the end of the Endurance Oregon Line, and in concert with the northern Washington Line, provides a unique opportunity for investigating a variety of interdisciplinary coastal studies.  The coastal region of the Pacific Northwest is a classic wind-driven upwelling system.  However, the presence of the Columbia River plume and the range of trajectories with which it can impinge on the ocean, and the strong variability of the width of the continental shelf, all play strong roles in setting the system’s response and behavior.  In addition, the aforementioned large-scale systems affect the coastal region by modulating the pycnocline, nutricline and oxycline depths and offshore pressure gradients, which in turn affect the onshore transport of physical, biological and chemical quantities.  The presence of internal waves driven by waves and tides, their interaction with the larger-scale currents, and their eventual breakdown into turbulence, are also vital to setting properties in this coastal region.  All of these are expected to change strongly over time, but will be well resolved by the measurements at the base of the slope (PN1A), the Endurance Line, and OOI supporting shipboard sampling for calibration and verification (e.g samples for dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll, nutrients).

Location: 44.6ºN  125.4ºW         Water Depth: 2906-2909 meters                                     

Infrastructure:

  • 1 Low-Voltage Node
  • 1 Medium-Power Junction Box
  • 1 Low-Power Junction Box
  • 1 Deep Profiling Mooring
  • 1 Shallow Profiling Mooring and 200 meter Platform
  • Instruments (pdf above)