Turner Designs Cyclops-7F Submersible Sensors - NexSens

Case Studies

Monitoring An Active Thermocline, Rapid Changes

Monitoring An Active Thermocline, Rapid Changes

Monitoring An Active Thermocline, Rapid Changes

Beginning in the 1990s, researchers have collected samples manually every few weeks on trips to Lake Champlain to gather data on its dynamics. But the metrics the team has collected are spotty, considering the faster-paced changes fueled by a changing climate.To help fill in those holes, researchers from the State University of New York (SUNY)—Plattsburgh deployed a cellular data buoy in the lake near Valcour Island. The buoy is providing previously unavailable data in real-time, helping research and education at the university, improving National Weather Service forecasts, and keeping local fishermen a little safer. Challenge: Monitoring the entire thermocline in real-time Previous attempts to monitor Lake Champlain’s thermocline only reached from six meters beneath the surface to the sediments—but the available data reveal that the lake experiences extreme fluctuations at times due to an active seiche and wind.

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Submerged Sensors of Sebago Lake

Submerged Sensors of Sebago Lake

Submerged Sensors of Sebago Lake

Sebago Lake is the second largest lake in Maine—one of the only lakes in the nation with clean enough water for use by a drinking water facility without filtration requirements. Residents of the Greater Portland area are the beneficiaries, and they are invested in maintaining their lake's health.A joint project between the Portland Water District (PWD) and Saint Joseph’s College of Maine (SJC) assisted by the NexSens team submerged around 145 pounds of new, high-tech equipment in Sebago Lake in 2018. Challenge: Committed to Keeping Crystal Clear The waters of Sebago Lake have always been very clear, but this monitoring project is a proactive attempt to prevent problems that experts predict changes in climate might cause.

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Highland Lake Stratification Questions

Highland Lake Stratification Questions

Highland Lake Stratification Questions

After algal blooms and other environmental stressors reduced water clarity on Maine’s Highland Lake, the Lakes Environmental Association launched a data buoy to study the water body’s health. The launch was made possible by an anonymous grant to the LEA.The association tests water quality on many lakes throughout the state, and hoped that the supportive community living around Highland Lake would likely chip in to make its operation a success. After the buoy launched in early 2014, community members added donations to cover additional oxygen sensors for the monitoring platform.With the new sensors, researchers looked to learn if waters at the bottom of Highland Lake were becoming anoxic, a small piece to the larger stratification puzzle they were trying to solve. If lake stratification was found to break down, especially in the summer, researchers hypothesized that recycled phosphorus might be making its way back to the surface where it could fuel algae growth.

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