Antarctic Circumnavigation Expedition 2017: motion sensor and GPS data

There is a lack of field data in the Sub-Antarctic and Antarctic Oceans. Thus, wave models are not well calibrated and perform poorly in these regions. Uncertainties relate to the difficulties to model the strong interactions between waves and currents (the Antarctic Circumpolar and tidal currents) and between waves and ice (reflected waves modify the incident field and ice floes affect transmission into the ice-covered ocean).

Drawbacks in wave modelling undermine our understanding and ability to protect this delicate ocean and coastal environment. By installing a Wave and Surface Current Monitoring System (WaMoS II, a marine X-Band radar) on the research vessel Akademic Thresnikov and using the meteo-station and GPS on-board, this project has produced a large database of winds, waves and surface currents. Dara were collected during the Antarctic Circmumnavigaion Expedition, which took place from Dec. 2016 to Mar. 2017.

The instrumentation operated in any weather and visibility conditions, and at night, monitoring the ocean continuously over the entire Circumnavigation. Records can support 1. the assessment of metocean conditions in the Southern Oceans; and 2. calibration and validation of wave and global circulation models. Data - AAS_4434_ACE_GPS contains basic metereological conditions acquired form the ship’s meteo-station, gepgraphical coordinates (latitude, longitude and altitude) from the ship’s GPS and ship motion data from the ship’s Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU).

These data are stored as time series with a sampling frequency of 1Hz.