HR: 09:45h
AN: H21E-06    [Abstracts]
TI: Development of a generic system for real-time data access and remote control of multiple in-situ water quality monitoring instruments
AU: * Wright, S A
EM: sawright@usgs.gov
AF: U.S. Geological Survey, 2255 N. Gemini Dr., Flagstaff, AZ 86001 United States
AU: Bennett, G E
EM: gbennett@usgs.gov
AF: U.S. Geological Survey, 2255 N. Gemini Dr., Flagstaff, AZ 86001 United States
AU: Andrews, T
EM: tandrews@usgs.gov
AF: U.S. Geological Survey, 2255 N. Gemini Dr., Flagstaff, AZ 86001 United States
AU: Melis, T S
EM: tmelis@usgs.gov
AF: U.S. Geological Survey, 2255 N. Gemini Dr., Flagstaff, AZ 86001 United States
AU: Topping, D J
EM: dtopping@usgs.gov
AF: U.S. Geological Survey, 2255 N. Gemini Dr., Flagstaff, AZ 86001 United States
AB: Currently, in-situ monitoring of water quality parameters (e.g. water temperature, conductivity, turbidity) in the Colorado River ecosystem typically consists of deploying instruments in the river, retrieving them at a later date, downloading the datalogger, then examining the data; an arduous process in the remote settings of Grand Canyon. Under this protocol, data is not available real-time and there is no way to detect problems with the instrumentation until after retrieval. The next obvious stage in the development of in-situ monitoring in Grand Canyon was the advent of one-way telemetry, i.e. streaming data in real-time from the instrument to the office and/or the world-wide-web. This protocol allows for real-time access to data and the identification of instrumentation problems, but still requires a site visit to address instrument malfunctions, i.e. the user does not have the ability to remotely control the instrument. At some field sites, such as the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, site visitation is restricted by remoteness and lack of traditional access routes (i.e. roads). Even at less remote sites, it may still be desirable to have two-way communication with instruments in order to, for example, diagnose and potentially fix instrumentation problems, change sampling parameters to save battery power, etc., without having to visit the site. To this end, the U.S. Geological Survey, Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center, is currently developing and testing a high-speed, two-way communication system that allows for real-time data access and remote control of instrumentation. The approach tested relies on internet access and may be especially useful in areas where land-line or cellular connections are unavailable. The system is composed of off-the-shelf products, uses a commercial broadband satellite service, and is designed in a generic way such that any instrument that communicates through RS-232 communication (i.e. a serial port) is compatible with the system. We are currently testing the system at two sites on the Colorado River in Grand Canyon and at one critical monitoring site on the Paria River where we have deployed suites of instruments for monitoring flow, sediment concentration, temperature, and conductivity. One aspect of the system that may be particularly useful for ecohydrological applications is the ability to remotely control on-site pump samplers, which allows for the collection of a water sample by the press of a button in the office.
DE: 1615 Biogeochemical processes (4805)
DE: 1818 Evapotranspiration
DE: 1836 Hydrologic budget (1655)
DE: 1851 Plant ecology
DE: 1894 Instruments and techniques
SC: Hydrology [H]
MN: 2005 Joint Assembly