Introduction to Coastal Ocean Observing Systems

Coastal ocean observing systems (COOS) play a vital role in advancing our understanding of continental shelf and estuarine oceanographic conditions worldwide and in providing essential information to complex coastal ocean stewardship issues. This introduction highlights some of the technological, scientific, organizational, and societal advances of COOS since its inception over a decade ago. The selected chapters contributed by COOS participants around the world provide examples of scientific synthesis and applications of acquired data using state-of-the-art coastal ocean observing and modeling technologies, and of the partnerships, governance structure, data management, and stakeholder relationships required for growth and contribution to topics such as maritime safety, water quality, coastal hazards, fisheries, ecosystems, and climate.