INTRODUCTION: An autonomous buoy was deployed in Lake Tanganyika, the second deepest lake in the world (mean depth 570 m, max depth 1470 m) ...
High frequency data from Lake Tanganyika
DFC
P. Mziray1,3, P. A. Staehr2, I. A. Kimirei1, C. M. O’Reilly4, C. V. Lugomela3, D. Trolle2, W. L. Perry4 1Tanzania
Fisheries Research Institute, Kigoma, Tanzania 2Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Denmark 3Department of Aquatic Sciences and Fisheries Technology, University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania 4Faculty of Geography and Geology, School of Bioscience, Illinois State University, USA
INTRODUCTION: An autonomous buoy was deployed in Lake Tanganyika, the second deepest lake in the world (mean depth 570 m, max depth 1470 m) holding 17% of the worlds freshwater. The buoy contributes with essential high frequency data to investigate how the lake productivity is controlled by wind-driven hydrodynamics and regional climate. The buoy is part of a five years project aiming at building regional capacity in lake quality monitoring and sustainable management of fisheries in Lake Tanganyika.
METHODS: Buoys around the world
PIs-Situation room
The buoy with its anchors
The CLEAT-Buoy site
The buoy at its location
Fitting of weather station Community engagement
One of the buoy’s anchor Releasing of sensor chain The buoy info. Web app
Access link: tinyurl.com/boyatanganyika
Fig. 1: CLEAT Buoy: Planning, Deployment and Community engagement
RESULTS:
Sampling period: 05 Dec 2016 – 27 Feb 2017; Weather data To date
3a
Epi-
2a
4a
Meta-
Thermocline
2b
3b
Hypo-
4b
2c
3c
4c
2d
Wet
Dry
Wet
Fig. 2a-d represents the daily average radiation and wind speed (from 0900-1500hr), daily sum precipitation and daily average air temperature; Fig. 3a, b and c represents the daily depth of the lake thermal stratification (epi-, meta-, hypo), Schmidts stability and water temperature respectively; Fig. 4a, b and c represents the daily chlorophyll-a at 20 m, photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) at 20 m and dissolved oxygen (DO) respectively.
CONCLUSIONS: ➢ High frequency data (weather and limnological) is of great potential in understanding the short and long term variabilities and functioning of especially oligotrophic and meromictic lakes like Lake Tanganyika ➢ High frequency long term monitoring of the lake will best reveal how the lake responds even with minor changes in weather patterns
REFERENCES:
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: This study is financed by DANIDA to the
Naithani et al. 2011 Hydrobiologia 671:147-163 Verburg et al. 2011 Limnology and Oceanography 56(3):910-926
CLEAT Project (Projections of Climate Change Effects on Lake Tanganyika) Project.
