Oregon Coastal Observing System

Since 1997, a growing system of sustained coastal measurements, together with a high-resolution, data-assimilating coastal modeling program, have been used off Oregon to study the response of the coastal ocean to forcing at a range of space and time scales. The measurements include a large array of HF radars, which permit time-series mapping of the surface circulation over most of the Oregon coast; both long-term and short-term moored components, which provide time-series sampling through the water column; and repeat hydrographic, ADCP and surface drifter sampling, including the Newport Hydrographic Line (which has been sampled since the 1960s). At interannual frequencies, these measurements show changes in the alongshore circulation over the continental slope accompanying ENSO. At seasonal and storm frequencies, the strength and persistence of spatial patterns in wind-driven currents and the importance of bathymetry in steering the circulation are seen. Discovery of episodic phenomena, such as the recent finding of a hypoxic pool and associated die-off of fish and crabs on the continental shelf off Heceta Head, are made possible by repeated sampling.