Event Title
Tracking Trends in Muskegon Lake Weather, Productivity and Hypoxia in Real-Time Using a Lake Observatory Buoy
Presentation Type
Poster/Portfolio
Presenter Major(s)
Biology
Mentor Information
Bopi Biddanda
Department
Annis Water Resource Institute (AWRI)
Location
Kirkhof Center KC 80
Start Date
11-4-2012 9:00 AM
Keywords
Information, Innovation, and Technology, Environment, Life Science, Physical Science, Technology
Abstract
Lakes are key freshwater reservoirs and sensitive sentinels of climate change. Upon close observation, lakes reveal themselves to be very complicated and dynamic ecosystems, and many aspects of how they work still remain unknown. Since May 2011 the Biddanda Lab has deployed a buoy in the lake equipped with sensors to continuously monitor the weather and water quality parameters in real-time. Although it has only been deployed recently, scientists at the institute have already observed aspects of the lake dynamics that were not clearly noticeable in previous years. Some questions I investigated using this buoy are: Do major storm events cause a boost or lag in lake productivity? How is increased productivity of surface water in the summer linked to bottom water hypoxia? I will also discuss the lack of a simple correlation between weather and productivity, and the discovery of persistent summertime lake-wide hypoxia in the bottom water of the lake.
Tracking Trends in Muskegon Lake Weather, Productivity and Hypoxia in Real-Time Using a Lake Observatory Buoy
Kirkhof Center KC 80
Lakes are key freshwater reservoirs and sensitive sentinels of climate change. Upon close observation, lakes reveal themselves to be very complicated and dynamic ecosystems, and many aspects of how they work still remain unknown. Since May 2011 the Biddanda Lab has deployed a buoy in the lake equipped with sensors to continuously monitor the weather and water quality parameters in real-time. Although it has only been deployed recently, scientists at the institute have already observed aspects of the lake dynamics that were not clearly noticeable in previous years. Some questions I investigated using this buoy are: Do major storm events cause a boost or lag in lake productivity? How is increased productivity of surface water in the summer linked to bottom water hypoxia? I will also discuss the lack of a simple correlation between weather and productivity, and the discovery of persistent summertime lake-wide hypoxia in the bottom water of the lake.