Drifter Home | Introduction | Instrumentation | Processing | Analysis

Santa Barbara Channel - Santa Maria Basin Circulation Study

DRIFTER DATA PROCESSING

Raw position and temperature data from the drifters are collected using the Argos satellite-based location and data collection system. The data are then processed in a series of steps that results in two time series: position and temperature.

Drifter locations are determined by Argos. Satellites measure the Doppler shift in frequency of drifter transmissions as the satellite passes overhead. The Doppler shift and a few other parameters are then used to determine the drifter location and assign an accuracy class. Position data are classed by Service Argos in one of three categories: class 1 (350m to 1000m), class 2 (150m to 350m), and class 3 (±150m) Various quality control checks are performed during each stage of data processing. These are used to determine how well the drifter functioned, if it beached, and/or was pulled from the water during deployment. In the last two cases, data time series are truncated to coincide with the last position prior to the beaching or removal.

Finally, the data are converted to the CSA format used here at the Center for Coastal Studies. In the future, we plan to store the data in netCDF format.

Only the position data is currently available on the web.

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