Instruments

The SeapHOx and SeaFET are autonomous sensors originally designed and developed by the Todd Martz Lab at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. The SeaFET was designed to measure pH and temperature. The SeapHOx, designed later, combined the SeaFET with additional integrated sensors for dissolved oxygen and conductivity. Refer to Martz et al. 2010 (doi:10.4319/lom.2010.8.172).

The SeapHOx package is now produced by Sea-Bird Scientific and allows for integrated data collection of pH, temperature, salinity, and oxygen. Refer to Sea-Bird for specific model information.

Towed, undulating vehicle usually equipped with a VPR, TAPS, PAR, CTD

Typically, a 16 inch diameter white/black quadrant disc used to measure water optical clarity

A device that collects samples of pore water from various horizons below the seabed.

Devices that collect samples from the sediment layer surface using suction. The mechanism of suction can be accomplished by either vacuum, by pressure difference between the air inside the sampler and surrounding water, by pumping water directly into the sampler, or by under pressure air to elevate the sediment inside the sampler. Devices are typically diver- or remotely-operated.

Floating sediment traps are specially designed sampling devices deployed to float in the water column (as opposed to being secured to a mooring at a fixed depth) for periods of time to collect particles from the water column that are falling toward the sea floor. In general a sediment trap has a container at the bottom to collect the sample and a broad funnel-shaped opening at the top with baffles to keep out very large objects and help prevent the funnel from clogging. The 'Sediment Trap -Floating' designation is used for a floating type of sediment trap about which no other design details are known.

A Particle Interceptor Trap is a prototype sediment trap designed in the mid 1990s to segregate 'swimmers' from sinking particulate material sampled from the water column. The prototype trap used 'segregation plates' to deflect and segregate 'swimmers' while a series of funnels collected sinking particles in a chamber (see Dennis A. Hansell and Jan A. Newton. September 1994. Design and Evaluation of a "Swimmer"-Segregating Particle Interceptor Trap, Limnology and Oceanography, Vol. 39, No. 6, pp. 1487-1495).

The self-contained underwater breathing apparatus or scuba diving system is the result of technological developments and innovations that began almost 300 years ago. Scuba diving is the most extensively used system for breathing underwater by recreational divers throughout the world and in various forms is also widely used to perform underwater work for military, scientific, and commercial purposes.

Reference: http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/technology/diving/diving.html

The Model SD-6000 MINI current meter is a vector averaging field current meter with recording capacity for up to 6,000 measurements of current speed, direction and temperature. The instrument can be programmed to carry out measurements at given intervals from each minute to each 3 hour via PC or by holding a magnet outside marked points on the instrument.Information is communicated to and from SD-6000 via an infra-red emitter/photodiode pair mounted inside the instrument's transparent top cap. An optoconverter (SD-40) which is positioned over the instrument top cap during communication with a PC converts optosignals to standard RS-232. Download of data to a PC takes a maximum 30 seconds after which data can be immediately processed and displayed. SD-6000 can also be used as a remote monitoring instrument supplying data in real time via a cable.

Submersible Digital Holographic Particle Imaging System for measurement of large, complex flocs and biological particles. Also used for investigation of frazil ice formation and in-situ measurements of falling snow flakes. A laser beam traverses the optical path of the camera, overfilling a CCD array, creating a hologram.

A Shaker is a piece of lab equipment used to mix, blend, or to agitate substances in tube(s) or flask(s) by shaking them, which is mainly used in the fields of chemistry and biology. A shaker contains an oscillating board which is used to place the flasks, beakers, test tubes, etc.

A Shimadzu TOC-V Analyzer measures DOC by high temperature combustion method.

A device mounted on a ship that holds water samples under conditions of controlled temperature or controlled temperature and illumination.

A split-beam scientific echosounder primarily designed for fisheries research. It can operate seven frequencies simultaneously ranging from 18 to 710 kHz. Real time echo integration and target strength analysis in an unlimited number of layers is provided as well as storage of raw data for replay or analysis in one of several post-processing software packages such as Simrad's BI60.

Single Operator Multi-parameter Metabolic Analyzer (SOMMA) which was manufactured at the University of Rhode Island and standardized at the Brookhaven National Laboratory.

The SLOWDROP Optical Profiler is a free-falling instrument package that "has a Sea-Bird 911+ CTD, two multiwavelength absorption meters (WetLabs ac-9), and a multiexcitation spectrofluorometer (WetLabs SAFIRE) as its basic configuration. The package is deployed on a loose data tether, with sufficient buoyancy on the package to obtain descent rates of 15-20 cm/s. These slow descent rates allow data acquisition on centimeter spatial scales and result in multiparameter characterization of small-scale features." (Cowles, et al.,1998)

References: Cowles, T.J., et al., 1998. Small-scale Planktonic Structure: Persistence and Trophic Consequences. Oceanography, Vol. 11(1), pp. 4-9.

The SOIREE Undulator was a torpedo-style fish used during the SOIREE cruise for the collection of underway water samples. A variety of sampling devices are housed within the fish, although little detailed information was provided. It was designed to undulate through a depth profile as it was being towed behind the research vessel.

Individually coded acoustic transmitters generate a unique aural sequence, as well as unique combinations of frequency and ping interval allowing detection by both passive and active receivers. see http://www.sonotronics.com/?page_id=116

A standard ARGO style float, called the Sounding Oceanographic Lagrangian Explorer (SOLO and SOLO-II).

SOLO floats are drifting instruments and have the ability to change their own buoyancy. After deployment it moves with the ocean currents and can, therefore, travel long distances on their own without the need of a ship or a person to handle them. They are  programmed to come to the ocean surface at regular intervals to transmit their data and position to orbiting satellites. The float then sinks again, continuing the process.

To control the buoyancy of the float, a small amount of oil is contained within the float. When the float is submerged, all of the oil is kept entirely within the hull.  When it is time to rise to the surface, the oil is pumped into an external rubber bladder that expands.  Since the weight of the float does not change but its volume increases when the bladder expands, the float becomes more buoyant and floats to the surface.  Similarly, when the float is on the surface and it is time to submerge, the oil is withdrawn from the bladder into the hull of the float and the buoyancy decreases.

Mesh-netted bag used for collection of spat (juvenile scallops, oysters, etc.). Access to the bag is by a top opening held shut with a drawstring. Strips or panels of black plastic or cloth material, designed to attract spat, are placed into the fine-meshed bag. Bags are closed and hung underwater for a period of time to allow the spat to settle in the collection material. Further description provided here (PDF).

A spectrometer is an optical instrument used to measure properties of light over a specific portion of the electromagnetic spectrum.

The Varian Cary 50 UV-Visible Spectrophotometer has a xenon flash lamp and a 1.5nm slit width for measurement of total particulate absorption spectra.

The World Precision Instruments (WPI) Multiple Pathlength Liquid Core Waveguide (MPLCW) system is an instrument package combining a Liquid Waveguide Capillary Cell (LWCC) and a WPI spectrophotometer via fiber optics. The waveguide is a fiber optic cell that combines an increased optical pathlength (50–500cm) with small sample volume (125–1250µL). Ultra-sensitive absorbance measurements can be performed in the ultraviolet (UV), visible (VIS) and near-infrared (NIR) to detect low sample concentrations in a laboratory or process control environment. (www.whpiinc.com)

Measures Doppler near surface vessel speed through the water.

The SPOT5 is an Argos transmitter manufactured by Wildlife Computers (Redmond, WA) and designed for deployment on marine mammals, fish, or seabirds. SPOT5 devices use the Argos satellite network to transmit locations of animals with an accuracy of +/- 350-meters. See more information from the manufacturer.

The squidpop assay is described in detail in Duffy et al., 2015 (doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0142994).

In summary, the squidpop consists of a standard prey item: a small piece of dried squid mantle tissue, tethered to a fiberglass plant stake with light monofilament fishing line. The squidpop is assembled by first punching a 1.3-centimeter (cm) diameter disc from the squid mantle using a cork borer. A length of monofilament line is threaded through the squid disc and tied to it securely, then the other end of the line is attached to the end of the plant stake with electrical tape, leaving 1-2 cm of line with the squid piece on the end. The short length of the line helps prevent tangling the tethers when squidpops are bundled together.

Squidpops are deployed by pushing the stakes securely into the substratum. The stakes are typically arranged in one or two rows, but the spatial arrangement is of secondary importance to ensuring that the squidpops can be reliably relocated and retrieved at the end of the deployment. Squidpops are assessed for the presence or absence of the squid bait after some period of time.

A Stramin net is specifically designed to sample plankton near the bottom and one such, designed by F.S. Russell in 1928, the 'stramin' net (Diameter: 1.5 m., Mesh: 6 strands/cm.) was equipped with rollers at the lower edge of its frame in order that it could be safely lowered until it touched the bottom. One "oblique" haul was made from the bottom (or from a depth of 200 m.) to the surface at each station. "It was mounted in an Agassiz trawl frame so that it was centered inside the trawl net, which was
also fixed to the frame and cleared the bottom by approximately 17.8 cm. No provisions were made to prevent contamination of the collection during the lowering of the net to the sea floor or the hauling back to the surface."(Wiebe and Benfield, 2003)

References:

Wiebe, Peter H. and Mark C. Benfield, 2003. From the Hensen net toward four-dimensional biological oceanography. Progress in Oceanography, 56, pp. 7-136.

The Submersible Incubation Device-In Situ Microbial Sampler (SID-ISMS) system was developed for the 2011 NSF funded DHAB Metazoans Mediterranean Brine research project and first used on cruise AT18-14. The system includes several integrated components including: a 2 liter incubation chamber; fixation filters and water sample bottles; a High Range CTD (Neil Brown Ocean Sensors, Inc., USA) equipped with two turbidity sensors (Wet Labs ECOView); an Aanderra 2808F oxygen optode; an SDSL-data link; and a sonardyne beacon, a pinger and a 24 volt deep-sea battery. The sensors and sampling devices are mounted on a frame that is attached to the hydro-wire. Lowering rate and recovery speed are controlled by a winch mounted on the surface vessel.

A high-precision instrument for measuring single-cell mass, volume, and density using one or two resonators connected by a serpentine fluidic channel. During operation of the dual SMR, a dilute cell population suspended in cell media, Fluid 1, is delivered to the sample bypass via pressure-driven flow (Figure 2A, Supplementary Figure 1), and single cells flow into the first SMR (SMR1) for the first buoyant mass measurement. The cells then travel through a microchannel to a cross-junction, where a second fluid of different density is introduced. After the cross-junction, cells continue through a long serpentine channel, which facilitates mixing of the two fluids. The cells next enter a second cantilever (SMR2) for a buoyant mass measurement in the mixed fluid, Fluid 2. As cells flow through each cantilever, a change in resonance frequency is recorded (Figure 2B), which is determined by each cell's buoyant mass in each cantilever's corresponding fluid.

Reference: Bryan, A.K. et al. (2015) Measuring single cell mass, volume, and density with dual suspended microchannel resonators. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 108: 10992–10996 doi:10.1073/pnas.1104651108. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3895367/

A device used to inject fluids into or withdraw them from something; consists of a hollow barrel fitted with a plunger and a hollow needle.

A rapid flow analyzer that may be used to measure nutrient concentrations in seawater. It is a continuous segmented flow instrument consisting of a sampler, peristaltic pump, analytical cartridge, heating bath, and colorimeter. See more information about this instrument from the manufacturer.

The Tekran 2537X performs continuous long-term, unattended analysis of gaseous elemental mercury. 

More information from the manufacturer:
https://www.tekran.com/products/ambient-air/tekran-model-2537-cvafs-automated-mercury-analyzer/
 

Records temperature data over a period of time.

A thermal cycler or "thermocycler" is a general term for a type of laboratory apparatus, commonly used for performing polymerase chain reaction (PCR), that is capable of repeatedly altering and maintaining specific temperatures for defined periods of time. The device has a thermal block with holes where tubes with the PCR reaction mixtures can be inserted. The cycler then raises and lowers the temperature of the block in discrete, pre-programmed steps. They can also be used to facilitate other temperature-sensitive reactions, including restriction enzyme digestion or rapid diagnostics.

(adapted from http://serc.carleton.edu/microbelife/research_methods/genomics/pcr.html)

A thermistor is a type of resistor whose resistance varies significantly with temperature, more so than in standard resistors. The word is a portmanteau of thermal and resistor. Thermistors are widely used as inrush current limiters, temperature sensors, self-resetting overcurrent protectors, and self-regulating heating elements.

Thermistors differ from resistance temperature detectors (RTD) in that the material used in a thermistor is generally a ceramic or polymer, while RTDs use pure metals. The temperature response is also different; RTDs are useful over larger temperature ranges, while thermistors typically achieve a higher precision within a limited temperature range, typically 90C to 130C.

A laboratory high mass resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) designed for elemental and isotopic analysis. The instrument is based on a multicollector platform, comprising eight moveable collector supports and one fixed center channel equipped with a Faraday cup and, optionally, an ion counter with or without a retardation lens. The Faraday cup is connected to a current amplifier, whose signal is digitized by a high linearity voltage to frequency converter. The instrument was originally manufactured by Thermo Finnigan, which has since been replaced by Thermo Scientific (part of Thermo Fisher Scientific). This model is no longer in production.

A Thermo Scientific NanoDrop spectrophotometer provides microvolume quantification and purity assessments of DNA, RNA, and protein samples. The results appear in seconds. NanoDrop spectrophotometers work on the principle of ultraviolet-visible spectrum (UV-Vis) absorbance. A series of Thermo Scientific NanoDrop spectrophotometers are manufactured by Thermo Fisher Scientific™ (https://www.thermofisher.com/us/en/home.html).

An on-line gas preparation and introduction system for isotope ratio mass spectrometry that is designed for high precision isotope and molecular ratio determination of headspace samples, including water equilibration, carbonates and atmospheric gases. The instrument allows for the use of a dual viscous flow inlet system of repetitive measurements of sample and standard gas on a continuous flow isotope ratio mass spectrometer (CF-IRMS) system. The sample volume is the sample vial (instead of a metal bellows), and the reference gas volume is a pressurized gas tank. The instrument consists of a user programmable autosampler, a gas sampling system, a maintenance-free water removal system, a loop injection system, an isothermal gas chromatograph (GC), an active open split interface, a reference gas injection system with three reference ports, and one or two optional LN2 traps for cryofocusing. The gas sampling system includes a two port needle which adds a gentle flow of He into the sample vial, diluting and displacing sample gas. Water is removed from the sample gas through diffusion traps. The loop injector aliquots the sample gas onto the GC column, which separates the molecular species. The reference gas injection system allows accurate referencing of each sample aliquot to isotopic standards. The system can be used with several options including a carbonate reaction kit that allows injection of anhydrous phospohric acid into sample vials.

A thermosalinograph (TSG) is used to obtain a continuous record of sea surface temperature and salinity. On many research vessels the TSG is integrated into the ship's underway seawater sampling system and reported with the underway or alongtrack data.

Tilt current meters are based upon the property that a tethered object will experience drag inside a current flow. If a restoring force perpendicular to the drag is introduced, the tethered object will tilt until the system of forces is balanced. Therefore, measuring the tilt allows calculation of drag force, from which current speed can be obtained. Measuring the direction of tilt gives current heading.

Tilt current meters operate under the drag-tilt principle and are designed to either float or sink depending on the type. A floating tilt current meter typically consists of a sub-surface buoyant housing that is anchored to the sea floor with a flexible line or tether. A sinking tilt current is similar, but the housing is designed such that the meter hangs from the attachment point. In either case, the housing tilts as a function of its shape, buoyancy (negative or positive) and the water velocity. Once the characteristics of a housing is known, the velocity can be determined by measuring the angle of the housing and direction of tilt.

A unit that accurately determines the nitrogen concentrations of organic compounds typically by detecting and measuring its combustion product (NO). See description document at: http://bcodata.whoi.edu/LaurentianGreatLakes_Chemistry/totalnit.pdf

A towed undulating vehicle is a generic class of instruments. See the data set specific information for a detailed description. These are often prototype instrument packages designed to make very specific measurements.

Automated trace element sampler (MITESS or ATE unit).

Bell, J., J. Betts, and E. Boyle (2002) MITESS: A Moored In-situ Trace Element Serial Sampler for Deep-Sea Moorings, Deep-Sea Research I: 49:2103-2118 (pdf)

More description: http://boyle.mit.edu/~ed/MITESS/MITESShomepage.html

The tracer injection sled is an integrated instrument package that is deployed from a vessel and lowered to the target potential density surface and then towed along that surface at 0.5 m/s while the tracer is injected. The sled is neutrally buoyant and is towed at the end of a 2-meter tether attached to the end of the CTD cable, which removes much of the ship motion. To follow lower frequency displacements of the target surface, the winch is controlled automatically with feedback from a SeaBird 911plus CTD system (Ledwell et al., 1998).The CTD has dual pumped C/T sensors mounted at the front of the sled to sample water not perturbed by the thermal wake of the sled. A WET Labs fluorometer is also present along with mounted injection orifices, pumps, batteries, fluid reservoirs, and control electronics for the injection.

The TRACOR Acoustic Profiling System (TAPS) is custom designed zooplankton sampler developed by V. Holliday of Tracor Inc. It uses a four transducer array operating at frequencies 265 kHz, 420 kHz, 1.1 MHz, and 3 MHz. The transducer array is designed to provide information on the distribution of individual organisms ranging in size from individual copepods to nauplii at distances of 2-3 m.

A transmissometer measures the beam attenuation coefficient of the lightsource over the instrument's path-length. This instrument designation is used when specific manufacturer, make and model are not known.

The original Tucker Trawl, a net with a rectangular mouth opening first built in 1951 by G.H. Tucker, was not an opening/closing system, but shortly thereafter it was modified so that it could be opened and closed.  The original had a 183 cm by 183 cm flexible rectangular mouth opening 914 cm long net with 1.8 cm stretched mesh for the first 457 cm and 1.3 cm mesh for last 457 cm. 152 cm of coarse plankton or muslin netting lined the end of the net. Tucker designed the net to collect animals associated with the deep scattering layers, principally euphausiids, siphonophores, and midwater fish. (from Wiebe and Benfield, 2003). Currently used Tucker Trawls usually have 1-m2 openings and can have a single net or multiple nets on the frame.

The TD-700 Laboratory Fluorometer is a benchtop fluorometer designed to detect fluorescence over the UV to red range. The instrument can measure concentrations of a variety of compounds, including chlorophyll-a and fluorescent dyes, and is thus suitable for a range of applications, including chlorophyll, water quality monitoring and fluorescent tracer studies. Data can be output as concentrations or raw fluorescence measurements.

The Turner Designs Model 10 fluorometer (manufactured by Turner Designs, turnerdesigns.com, Sunnyvale, CA, USA) is used to measure Chlorophyll fluorescence. No information could be found for this specific model.