LISTEN ON THE WATER >> Dial for information 'Smart buoy' talks to boaters BUOY TALK

July 20, 2008 12:16 am

Members of the Army Corps of Engineers deploy a 'smart buoy' capable of broadcasting information on weather, water conditions and Virginia history.

DELTAVILLE

--The official deployment of the bright yellow high-tech piece of the new system was still 20 minutes away.

But that didn't stop the Chesapeake Bay Foundation's John Page Williams yesterday morning from trying to connect right then with the new addition off Stingray Point.

From the bow of a restored work boat ferrying dignitaries to the event at the mouth of the Rappahannock River, Williams pulled out his cell phone and dialed the magic digits: 877/286-9229, choosing the Stingray Point option.

"The buoy says the air temperature's 93 degrees," said Williams with a smile. "Sitting up there on the black deck of that barge, I'm sure it is 93. But once it gets into the water, it'll be telling us everything from water temperature to wave heights to water quality."

Williams had connected, in what engineers like to refer to as "near real time," to a collection of hard plastic data-gathering gizmos and communications links that moments later became the fourth "smart buoy" launched in and around the bay.

Part of the Chesapeake Bay Interpretive Buoy System, the phone-booth-size buoy is one of several that will mark key points along the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail.

That's the route taken by Smith in 1607 and 1608 to chart the land and waterways of the Chesapeake Bay, now being turned by the National Park Service into a trail to be used to teach people about the journey and to boost tourism along the route.

Peyton Robertson, director of the Chesapeake Bay office of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration overseeing the smart buoys, said they'll be used many ways.

"One of the most exciting is the informational and educational opportunities they'll provide," said Robertson. "Connecting by phone, computer or PDA, you can check water temperature, dissolved oxygen levels, wave heights and more."

He added, "That's information usable to both the scientist and the middle school student in Fredericksburg learning about the science of the bay, especially if it's charted over time."

In addition to the meteorological and other data shared, the buoys will use phone and computer contacts to share information about Smith's journey and the water trail.

"I like to think of the buoys as sentinels along the trail," said Robertson, "markers that will help to interpret things that happened on Smith's journey."

Including how the explorer was stung by a stingray in July of 1608 as he used a sword to fish in the shallows not far from the buoy.

Dan Smith, superintendent of Colonial National Historical Park in Jamestown, said the smart buoy launched near there last year has worked to tie people who come with different interests to both the Chesapeake Bay and the Smith trail.

Pointing to a youngster at the bow of the viewing boat, he noted: "His is the generation that won't think twice about dialing up a buoy somewhere to check water conditions. When he does, he'll learn something about the Smith trail as well."

Williams said the information from the Stingray Point buoy can be helpful in many other ways.

He said watermen, anglers and recreational boaters will benefit from access to real-time information from the water.

"Knowing that there are 4-foot waves or 20-knot winds from the south is invaluable information to the fisherman heading out in an 18-foot boat," he said, "and to the charter captain."

Beyond that, Robertson noted, the smart buoys will--for the first time--provide forecasters who prepare bay weather advisories with real-time information from spots along the broad body of water.

Measurements indicating surging tides, extreme currents and rising winds can warn boaters and homeowners of storms that can cause property damage. Several of those have hit the region in recent years.

"There really is a public-safety perspective to the information," he said.

Rep. Robert Wittman of Westmoreland County likes the smart-buoy system, saying he hopes it can boost tourism in the region and make more people advocates for the Chesapeake Bay.

The Stingray Point buoy joins the one at Jamestown, one near Point Lookout at the mouth of the Potomac River in Maryland and one at the mouth of the Patapsco River near Baltimore.

More are planned.

Rob Hedelt: 540/374-5415
Email: rhedelt@freelancestar.com

Connect to the Stingray Point buoy or others by dialing 877/286-9229 (877/BUOYBAY).

Access buoy information online at buoybay.org.