Saving shellfish harvest by predicting ocean chemistry using Microsoft Azure

Опубликовано 2 февраля 2016, 17:37

Scientists from the University of Washington were asked by the Washington state legislature to create predictions about ocean acidification for Pacific Northwest waters. Infant oysters were being killed in record numbers, and the cause appeared to be the change in water acidity that has been linked to global climate change. Parker MacCready, a physical oceanographer, led a team that is using Microsoft Azure to create the cloud-based storage system to hold enormous amounts of data from a system called ROMS, Regional Ocean Modeling System. This feeds the storage system model – named LiveOcean. LiveOcean’s goal is to provide 3-7 day forecasts of ocean chemistry in waters entering shellfish growing areas. While the shellfish industry is eager to use the predictive models, LiveOcean will be expandable to help a wide swath of ocean users: kayakers looking for current predictions, recreational and industrial salmon fishers, as well as those trying to track an oil spill or other environmental disaster.

To learn more about the Microsoft Azure for Research program, visit azure4research.com