國立成功大學 近海水文中心
Coastal Ocean Monitoring Center, National Cheng Kung University (COMC, NCKU)

Ocean Observation

The ocean covers more than 70% of the Earth’s surface and is the largest heat reservoir on the planet. As such, it plays a crucial role in buffering and regulating variations in atmospheric temperature. Beyond temperature, atmospheric components essential to human survival are also closely linked to the ocean. Studies indicate that the ocean stores about 50 times more carbon dioxide than the atmosphere, and over 50% of the world’s oxygen is produced by the ocean. However, many natural phenomena are inherently complex and stochastic, and given the vastness of the ocean, human understanding of the marine environment remains limited.
Matthew Fontaine Maury (1806–1873) is known as the “Pathfinder of the Seas” and the father of modern oceanography and naval meteorology. Recognizing the immense scope of ocean exploration, Maury believed that international collaboration was essential for acquiring sufficient scientific knowledge of the oceans. He proposed that the United States invite maritime nations worldwide to participate in a conference aimed at establishing a universal meteorological system. This led to a meeting held in Brussels in 1853, where many countries agreed to cooperate by sharing marine weather data under unified standards (Source: Ocean data query).
To meet diverse objectives and needs, various ocean observation technologies have been developed. Due to their ability to provide continuous and stable operations, in-situ observations remain the most widely used approach today. These include data buoys, remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), and ocean research vessels, all of which continue to be extensively employed worldwide for marine exploration. With the successful launch of the first artificial satellite into an orbit approximately 500 kilometers above the Earth in 1957, the satellite era began. The “synoptic view” advantage of satellites makes them one of the most effective tools for observing vast oceanic regions.

Thanks to the efforts of countries around the world, a significant volume of ocean observation data has been accumulated. At present, these data are widely used internationally in a variety of practical maritime applications, including:

  1. Ocean Engineering Applications: Wave height is directly related to the safety of offshore and coastal structures. The planning and design of ocean engineering projects typically rely on the analysis and synthesis of long-term ocean observation data to derive the environmental parameters required for structural design.
  2. Marine Route Planning: Shipping routes can be optimized by analyzing long-term global wave height data, allowing for the selection of routes with lower sea state risks.
  3. Climate Research: By integrating ocean numerical models with long-term observational data, researchers can predict climate characteristics and oceanic disturbances at both global and regional scales.
  4. Weather and Sea State Forecasting: A wide range of observational data—including satellites, weather balloons, land-based stations, ships, and ocean data buoys—is extensively used to improve the accuracy of weather and sea state forecasts.
  5. Typhoon Forecasting: The characteristics of typhoons are strongly influenced by sea surface temperatures in adjacent waters. Measuring ocean temperature helps significantly improve the accuracy of typhoon predictions.
  6. Maritime Search and Rescue: People who fall overboard often drift with ocean currents. Current data provide the basis for estimating drift trajectories during search and rescue operations.
  7. Marine Emergency Response: Annually, more than 3 million tons of waste oil drift across the world’s oceans, about 13% of which originates from shipwreck oil spills (Source: 能源知識庫). In the event of such accidents, data on wind, waves, and currents are used to predict the drift direction and dispersion area of oil spills, forming the basis for emergency response actions.
  8. Fisheries Support: Sea surface temperature is a key indicator for locating fish populations. Globally, marine information service providers have transformed temperature observation data into actionable information for fisheries, helping to identify potential fishing grounds.

Reference

  1. Chai, F., Johnson, K.S., Claustre, H. et al. Monitoring ocean biogeochemistry with autonomous platforms. Nat Rev Earth Environ 1, 315–326 (2020).
  2. Ocean data query，https://coastproc.readthedocs.io/en/latest/oceandata.html
  3. 能源知識庫，https://magazine.twenergy.org.tw/Cont.aspx?CatID=28&ContID=956
中
中