Bedford Basin Time Series
Background of ±«Óãtv's Bedford Basin Time Series
The ±«Óãtv component of the Bedford Basin Time Series (BBTS) began in 2008 when Dr. John Cullen’s group at ±«Óãtv deployed a buoy in Bedford Basin in collaboration with the Bedford Institute of Oceanography (BIO). The buoy required weekly sampling for calibration and validation purposes, mainly for bio-optical and phytoplankton ecology research. Although the buoy did not remain in the water for a long time due to ship traffic issues, the weekly sampling continued to this day.
Bedford Basin provides not only a convenient location for research, but also is a proxy for conditions on the Scotian Shelf. The initial focus on weekly bio-optical properties has expanded over time, adding a variety of water samples analyses due to an expanding interest from several ±«Óãtv research groups. A regular sampling series of this size and with such a variety of data is invaluable in monitoring environmental fluctuations over time and helpful in modelling and forecasting.
The program is coordinated by and is funded by and . The weekly Wednesday cruises take place onboard Coast Guard vessel Sigma T as part of the Bedford Basin Monitoring Program operated by BIO. The regular sampling team consists of two CEOTR and one DFO field technician. Samples are collected for numerous ±«Óãtv research groups, including Doug Wallace’s CERC.OCEAN lab, Julie Laroche’s Marine Microbial Lab, Hugh MacIntyre’s Phytoplankton Lab, and the ±«Óãtv Aquatron group. Other ±«Óãtv research groups also work on the Bedford Basin associated with our program, including ²¹²Ô»åÌý.