Shallow Water Surface Drifters In response to NOAA/COP funded
research needs for high resolution Lagrangian analysis of
Florida Bay interior basin flow fields, a shallow water drift
buoy was designed and developed by AOML and RSMAS in Miami,
Florida. Primary design guidelines required a device capable of
operating in water depths of one meter or less for up to a two
week period. Small size was a factor both in minimizing windage
at the surface and in aiding deployment and recovery efforts.
The drifter would also require onboard GPS for accurate
positioning. The need for a high-resolution record of the
drifterâ€™s track required GPS data to be logged onboard for
post-recovery upload. However, in attempts to aid users in the
drifterâ€™s recovery, a subset of these data would need to be
transmitted to the users during deployment; this is handled by
an onboard ARGOS transmitter. The hull is constructed of a 0.125
inch thick lexan, two-piece thermoformed shell in the general
shape of a disc. The top is slightly do