Buoy E1

Buoy E1 constitutes one of two measurement stations operated by ISMAR along the coast of Romagna off the coast of Rimini.

The E1 meteo-oceanographic buoy is located in the Northern Adriatic Sea, about 4 nautical miles north of the city of Rimini, the system is anchored to the seafloor by chain and dead body on a 10.5 m seabed (GPS 44.14325 N – 12.5701 E). The station was first placed by ISMAR in August 2006 as an automatic station for monitoring anoxic and hypoxic events in the coastal area of Romagna, within the LIFE+ Environment EMMA project; at the end of the project the system was kept active and implemented over time. The E1 buoy consists of a meteorological station and a submerged mooring line that houses oceanographic instrumentation at two depths (-1.6 m and -8 m).

The buoy is located at a key monitoring point for the study of interactions between the Upper Adriatic and the Po River, experiencing a wide range of oceanographic conditions. It acquires, continuously, oceanographic, meteorological, and biogeochemical parameters also for the purpose of physical and biological modeling. The station is considered representative of coastal zone conditions in the north-central Adriatic.

The system is equipped with NRT logging and transmission devices, 12 and 24 VDC DC power systems, meteorological station, and oceanographic instrumentation at two depth levels (including CTD probes, dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll, turbidity, and CDOM sensors, ADCP). Additional measurements are routinely collected at the site with periodic sampling regarding biology, chemistry, and oceanography.

The buoy contributes to the European research infrastructure eLTER-RI, as part of the Upper Adriatic macrosite.