What are Sustained Observations?
Sustained ocean observations are the foundation of our understanding of how the ocean regulates climate, supports life, and responds to change. Through continuous monitoring using ships, satellites, autonomous vehicles, and sensors, we transform the ocean from a poorly known system into an actively monitored component of an integrated Earth system. This enables informed decisions from daily forecasts to multi-decadal climate policy.
Sustained ocean observations are in situ and remote measurements of the ocean and coasts, made primarily for public good and research of public interest. They're maintained continuously or repeatedly over long durations with no planned end date, designed to monitor long-timescale variability and trends and to support an end-to-end value chain from data to societal benefits.
These observations turn raw measurements into actionable knowledge, providing the foundation for everything from weather forecasts to climate policy decisions.
Why are sustained ocean observations essential?
Sustained ocean observations are essential because the ocean regulates climate, supports biodiversity and food, and underpins weather and climate prediction. Without continuous ocean measurements, society loses the ability to detect change, attribute causes, and manage risks in the wider Earth system.
The ocean's critical role:
- Has absorbed over 90% of excess planetary heat
- Has absorbed around a third of anthropogenic CO₂
- Regulates surface warming and sea-level rise
- Produces more than half of Earth's oxygen
Sustained observing systems enable informed decisions from daily forecasts to multi-decadal climate policy, transforming the ocean from a poorly understood frontier into an actively monitored component of an integrated Earth system.
What parts of the ocean do these observations cover?
Sustained ocean observations cover essentially all parts of the ocean system, from coasts to the deep open ocean and polar seas.
Global coverage includes:
- Ocean surface and interior
- Seafloor and coastal zones
- Open-ocean basins
- Boundary currents and major circulation systems (such as the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, or AMOC)
- Continental shelves and coastal seas
- Hard-to-access regions such as polar oceans and the deep ocean
We make observations using satellites, moorings, profiling floats (Argo), ocean gliders, repeat ship sections, ocean surface drifters, and tide gauges for long-term sea level rise monitoring.
How do sustained observations impact climate science?
Sustained observations track how the ocean stores and redistributes heat, freshwater, and carbon, essential for understanding climate change.
Key impacts:
The ocean has absorbed over 90% of excess heat and around a third of anthropogenic CO₂. Sustained ocean observations constrain and initialise climate and ocean models, improving estimates of trends in ocean circulation (AMOC), sea-level rise, deoxygenation, and acidification.
Observations reveal when the system may be approaching thresholds or tipping points, providing early warning of potentially irreversible changes.
Continuous observing captures modes of variability (like decadal North Atlantic changes and marine heatwaves) that strongly shape regional climate, extremes, and weather predictability. This improves seasonal-to-decadal forecasts, supporting climate-smart planning for sectors such as agriculture, water management, and coastal adaptation.
What would happen without sustained ocean observations?
Without sustained observations, our ability to understand and respond to ocean and climate change would be severely compromised.
Climate consequences:
- We would not be able to evaluate Climate and ocean models
- Uncertainties about heat and carbon ocean uptake would increase
- Projections of sea level, extremes, and ocean circulation changes would become much less reliable
- Recognition of emerging risks (accelerating ice-sheet loss, AMOC weakening, large-scale ocean deoxygenation) would be delayed
- Confidence in mitigation pathways would weaken
Ecosystem consequences:
- Regime shifts and collapses of key habitats (coral reefs, kelp forests, seagrass) would only be recognised after the fact
- Fisheries failures would be detected too late
- Restoration options would be limited and far costlier or impossible
- Reduced capacity to detect marine pollution, invasive species, and disease outbreaks
- Increased health and livelihood risks for coastal populations
How do observations support marine ecosystems and biodiversity?
Sustained observing programmes detect critical changes in marine ecosystems, enabling timely response and informed management.
Ecosystem monitoring:
- Detects marine heatwaves, hypoxic "dead zones," and coral bleaching events
- Tracks shifts in plankton communities
- Enables attribution of changes to climate drivers
- Gives managers a chance to respond whilst impacts may still be reversible
Long-term insights:
- Long time series at coasts, reefs, and open-ocean sites reveal non-linear, cascading ecosystem changes
- Helps identify early warning indicators of regime shifts, such as kelp forest collapse or loss of blue-carbon habitats
- Supports conservation actions (Marine Protected Areas, fisheries closures, habitat restoration) that maintain biodiversity, productivity, and carbon sequestration capacity
How do we conduct sustained ocean observations?
We conduct sustained ocean observations through an integrated approach combining research vessels, autonomous vehicles, advanced sensors, modelling, and collaborative platforms.
Research vessels:
- RRS Discovery and RRS James Cook, equipped with state-of-the-art sensors, echo-sounders, underway surface measurements, and flexible labs for multidisciplinary surveys in extreme environments
- Ship-based expeditions for detailed surveys
- Opportunistic data collection from commercial ships
Autonomous systems:
- Ocean gliders
- Underwater robots
- Drifting surface buoys
- Argo floats profiling at 2,000m depth
- Enable continuous adaptive observing from the surface to deep ocean
Modelling and integration:
- Integrates climate and regional models with observations
- Predicts ocean changes, ocean heat uptake, and coastal/shelf sea dynamics
- Fosters partnerships across disciplines
Sensors and technology:
- Develops innovative sensors, instruments, and samplers
- Lab-on-a-chip systems
- Environmental DNA (eDNA) systems
- Mechanical engineering supports custom design and deployment for precise measurements
What major programmes do we lead or contribute to?
The NERC-funded ATLANTiS project unites UK sustained observation systems into a coherent programme, serving as a model for global efforts and contributing to the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS).
ATLANTiS websiteA sustained, multidisciplinary observatory in the North Atlantic, managed on behalf of the marine research community. For over 20 years, the observatory has provided key time-series datasets for analysing the effect of climate change on the open ocean and deep-sea ecosystems.
PAP WebsiteA flagship programme observing large-scale ocean circulation, specifically the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC).
RAPID WebsiteWe lead initiatives advancing autonomous swarms and emissions-reducing technologies in partnership with UK Research and Innovation.
NZOC informationWhat teams work on sustained observations?
Sustained ocean observations involve collaboration across multiple teams:
- Open Ocean Physics
- Global Climate
- Biological Carbon Cycles
- Coastal Ocean
- Marine Biogeochemistry
- Marine Ecosystem Processes
- Marine Geoscience
- Ocean-Shelf Processes
- Seafloor Ecosystems
- Ocean Technology
- NOCi
- MARS (Marine Autonomous and Robotic Systems)
- NMF (National Marine Facilities)
This integrated approach ensures observations span all domains of ocean science and serve multiple research and societal needs.
What have we learnt from decades of sustained observations?
Our sustained ocean observing work has shown how the ocean is changing on timescales from days to decades, and why that matters for climate, ecosystems, and society.
Climate change signals:
- How quickly deep and intermediate waters are warming
- Changes in major current systems on seasonal to decadal timescales
- Variability in the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation
- Patterns of sea-level rise
- Ocean deoxygenation and acidification trends
Ecosystem responses:
- Effects of climate change on open ocean and deep-sea ecosystems
- Timing and magnitude of plankton blooms
- Cascading impacts through marine food webs
- Early warning signs of ecosystem regime shifts
Operational improvements:
- Design principles for lower-carbon, more autonomous ocean observing systems
- Integration of multiple platforms and sensors for comprehensive monitoring
- Data quality and management practices for long-term time series
How have we advanced autonomous ocean observing?
As part of our ongoing commitment to a Net Zero Oceanographic Capability, we lead the development of autonomous vehicles that are increasing our ability to measure the ocean at the space and time scales we require.
This extends from over 25 years of pioneering development of multiple new technologies, platforms, and facilities to support discovery research. Marine Autonomous and Robotic Systems (MARS) development spans decades, involving international collaborations for discovery research and advancing autonomous swarms that reduce the carbon footprint of ocean observation.
How do we communicate sustained observations research?
We actively engage with public audiences, policymakers, and the media to communicate the importance of sustained ocean observations:
Major events:
- COP30: Tipping points discussion panel at the virtual ocean pavilion
- Open day 2025
Media coverage:
- BBC South Today: Observing the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC)
- ITV News: "Could changing ocean currents make UK winters colder?"
- Channel 4: Are UK flood warnings linked to ocean currents
- Channel 4: Collapse of this Atlantic current could change Europe's climate forever
These outreach activities help connect the public to the critical role of sustained observations in understanding and responding to ocean and climate change.
How do sustained observations support climate policy?
Whilst sustained ocean observations and research don't directly reduce greenhouse gas emissions, they're critical to effective mitigation and adaptation.
Supporting climate action:
- Verify whether emissions reductions are working
- Identify feedbacks that could accelerate warming, such as weakened ocean carbon uptake or loss of coastal blue-carbon systems
- Inform IPCC assessments and national climate reports
- Make mitigation and adaptation targets more realistic and trackable
- Support climate-smart planning across sectors
By providing the evidence base for climate policy, sustained observations help ensure that decisions are grounded in the best available science.
