A pilot training exercise took place in Constanța, Romania aboard the Mare Nigrum, a research vessel operated by partner GeoEcoMar, involving the use of a salinometer to conduct observations in the Black Sea.
As part of the EuroGO-SHIP aim to support access to shared facilities and training of best practice techniques, the salinometer–an autosal laboratory instrument–was loaned to GeoEcoMar from INOCEN Group IEO-CSIC in Spain via team member Marta Álvarez. Along with Yvonne Firing of NOC in the U.K., Marta trained GeoEcoMar’s Teodor Muscat and Sorin Balan on the use of the salinometer.
“Discrete measurements for salinity are crucial to calibrate the most basic, critical and widely used system for hydrographic measurements; a Conductivity Temperature Depth (CTD) sensor provides the basic information about temperature and salinity through the water column,” Marta explains.
“While GeoEcoMar have been making observations in the Black Sea regularly with the use of the CTD instrument, the readings can drift,” Yvonne added. “Data quality can be improved by using the salinometer to determine the salinity of water samples by measuring their conductivity, leading to more precise information.”
GeoEcoMar will introduce this new technique to their Black Sea observations by using the salinometer on a cruise in early July before returning it to Spain. Read more.
