Instrument: Bio-Optical Profiling System

Bio-Optical Profiling System (BOPS) is an updated version of the BOPS originally developed by Smith et al. (1984) and is used to collect optical data. The heart of the BOPS is a Biospherical instruments MER-1048 Spectroradiometer which measures up and downwelling spectral irradiance and upwelling spectral radiance. The MER-1048 also has sensors for Photosynthetically Available Radiation (PAR), depth, tilt and roll. In addition, temperature and conductivity are measured with a Sea-Bird CTD, chlorophyll fluorescence is measured with a Sea Tech fluorometer and beam transmission with a Sea Tech 25-cm transmissometer. The Mer-1048 acquires all the data 16 times a second, averages it to four records a second and sends it up the cable to a deck box and a Compaq-286 computer which stores the data on the hard disk. Additionally, a deck cell measures the downwelling surface irradiance in four spectral channels. Also surface PAR is measured continuously using a Biospherical Instruments QSR-240 Integrating PAR sensor. The profile data is commonly filtered to remove obvious data spikes and then binned into one-meter averages. Raymond C. Smith, Charles R. Booth, and Jeffrey L. Star, "Oceanographic biooptical profiling system," Appl. Opt. 23, 2791-2797 (1984).