Both the HawQi and Tūtira buoys are back in the water after their winter service.
Both the HawQi and Tūtira buoys are back in the water after their winter service.
The HAWQi buoy is located off the coast of Tangoio and provides a range of data on water quality, temperature, waves and tides through HBRC’s website www.hbrc.govt.nz. An ADCP (Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler) has been added to the range of instruments to provide information on ocean currents.
The buoy at Lake Tūtira performs a similar function in providing data on the fresh water lake. It streams data on dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll, water temperature, turbidity and water depth. The buoy is located above one of the deeper parts of the lake (42m) and gives our scientists an indication if algal blooms are likely. The Tūtira buoy has been in place since January 2009 and is on loan from the Ministry of Primary Industries. HBRC’s science team is using data from the buoy to develop computer models to look at solutions for the lake’s persistent water quality issues.
The data from both buoys can be accessed on www.hbrc.govt.nz . For Tangoio keyword search: ‘Nearshore Water Quality’; for Tūtira keyword search ‘Tūtira Regional Park’.