The National Reference Station Network is designed to provide baseline information, at timescales relevant to human response, that is required to understand how large‐scale, long-term change and variability in the global ocean are affecting the ecosystems of Australia’s coastal seas.  The goal is to develop multi‐decadal time series of the physical and biogeochemical properties of Australia’s coastal seas, to inform research into ocean change, climate variability, ocean circulation and ecosystem responses.  Traditionally, monitoring has been undertaken by regular boat-based sampling at simple waypoints.  Through the IMOS National Reference Station Network, moored instruments are now located at three historical and six new sites around Australia’s coast, allowing fine scale temporal investigation of a number of variables.

Deployed in up to 100m of water, the moorings record meteorological data and information about the physical and biological properties of the water such as fluorescence and dissolved oxygen concentration.  Observations at the National Reference Stations are undertaken through the water column, from surface to seabed and are sensor‐based, where possible, and supplemented by minimal vessel‐based biogeochemical sampling.  Configuration of the moorings at each station is modified regionally to cope with local deployment challenges from fish bite to cyclones.