Small round buoys are used to mount the main sensors being deployed. Two main types are being deployed, a larger 1.8m buoy used for deeper deployments and a smaller 1.35m buoy for shallower areas. As of June 2009 only the smaller buoys have actually been deployed.

The buoys are moored with a dual point mooring to keep them aligned so as to maximise the solar panel performance. The moorings consist of a two railway wheels (each 250Kgs) attached to galvanise chain and then to a stainless mooring wire and then to the buoy. A bungy is put in between the bottom part of the mooring and the buoy to keep the mooring tight

Photo showing the railway wheel and the chain.

The buoys themselves are made up of two parts, the lower float and an upper cover that creates an area for the housing of the instruments. The buoy is mounted on a frame or set of ‘legs’ that ensures that in periods of low tide the buoy will sit on the bottom and then re-float as the tide rises. This is to ensure they don’t fall over or become lodged in the event of an extreme low tide.

The photo below shows the basic float with the lower round buoyancy, the upper cover in which the electronics are housed (where the ‘GBROOS’ sticker is) and the ‘legs’. A frame is added to the top of the cover to hold the solar panels, GPS, navigation light and aerial. The buoys are manufactured by SolarTech, an internal frame is added under the cover and, in a similar design to the Network Poles, two Pelican cases are mounted onto the frame, one for the battery and the other for the Logger. The logger case contains a CR1000 logger, RF411 radio, connectors for power and data, a SeaBird inductive modem and fuses to protect the electronics in case of a wiring issue.

Photo with the cover off showing the galvanised frame and the Pelican cases attached. The photo below shows a deployed buoy with the top frame with the solar panels, GPS (white ‘mushroom’) navigation light and aerial.

Deployed Buoy at Heron Island.