Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla, CA 92093-0213, USA.
Water Sci Technol. 2013;67(4):925-33. doi: 10.2166/wst.2012.635.
A monitoring mission to map and characterize the Point Loma Ocean Outfall (PLOO) wastewater plume using an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) was performed on 3 March 2011. The mobility of an AUV provides a significant advantage in surveying discharge plumes over traditional cast-based methods, and when combined with optical and oceanographic sensors, provides a capability for both detecting plumes and assessing their mixing in the near and far-fields. Unique to this study is the measurement of Colored Dissolved Organic Matter (CDOM) in the discharge plume and its application for quantitative estimates of the plume's dilution. AUV mission planning methodologies for discharge plume sampling, plume characterization using onboard optical sensors, and comparison of observational data to model results are presented. The results suggest that even under variable oceanic conditions, properly planned missions for AUVs equipped with an optical CDOM sensor in addition to traditional oceanographic sensors, can accurately characterize and track ocean outfall plumes at higher resolutions than cast-based techniques.
2011 年 3 月 3 日，使用自主水下航行器（AUV）对波多黎各海洋排水口（PLOO）废水羽流进行测绘和特征描述的监测任务。AUV 的机动性在调查排放羽流方面相对于传统的基于投送的方法具有显著优势，并且与光学和海洋学传感器相结合，可以同时检测羽流并评估其在近场和远场的混合情况。本研究的独特之处在于测量排放羽流中的有色溶解有机物（CDOM），并将其应用于定量估计羽流的稀释度。本文介绍了排放羽流采样的 AUV 任务规划方法、使用机载光学传感器对羽流特征的描述，以及观测数据与模型结果的比较。结果表明，即使在海洋条件变化的情况下，配备光学 CDOM 传感器以及传统海洋学传感器的 AUV 进行适当规划的任务，也可以以比基于投送的技术更高的分辨率准确地描述和跟踪海洋排水口羽流。
