CIMI’s New Ocean Tool:
A Spotter Buoy Tracking Waves and Temperature to Support Kelp Restoration
By: Deidre Sullivan, Co-Principal Investigator of the CIMI Kelp Restoration Project
There’s something new bobbing off the coast of Catalina Island—and it’s helping scientists and students alike get a clearer picture of how kelp forests survive and thrive. Catalina Island Marine Institute has installed a Sofar Spotter Wave and Temperature Buoy as part of its long-term kelp restoration project, and it’s already proving to be a game-changer.
The Buoy is moored in 34 feet of water in Toyon Bay. In this photo Toyon Point is to the left, dive deck to the right.
So, what exactly is a Sofar Spotter Buoy?
The Sofar Spotter Buoy is a compact, solar-powered, high-tech tool that floats on the ocean surface and collects real-time data on sea conditions. It measures wave height, wave period, direction, sea surface temperature, and ocean bottom temperature at 10 m (33 feet) and it transmits this information every hour via satellite. That means researchers—and students—can log in anytime to see exactly what the ocean is doing near CIMI’s kelp beds. Even better, all this data is archived and accessible to the global research community.
Why is this buoy so important for kelp restoration?
Kelp forests are dynamic ecosystems, and they respond dramatically to environmental conditions. For restoration projects to succeed, we need to know not just how the kelp is growing, but why it’s growing—or why it might be dying off. This is where the Spotter Buoy plays a key role. By monitoring temperature trends and wave activity over time, we can start answering some of the most important questions in kelp ecology:
Which environmental factors are most strongly correlated with kelp health? For example, does a rise in temperature lead to more kelp growth—or less? Do large waves damage young kelp or help clear space for it to grow?
Are there environmental thresholds that enhance kelp recruitment success? Maybe kelp recruits best after a series of moderate storms or during specific seasonal temperature ranges.
Are there environmental thresholds that reduce kelp forest resilience? Understanding what stressors push kelp forests past the point of recovery—like prolonged high temperatures or unusually intense wave action—helps us better prepare for climate-related impacts.
This buoy is more than just a tool for scientists—it’s a platform for education and conservation, supported by a generous grant from the Kansas City Zoo and Aquarium. Thanks to the Kansas City Zoo and Aquarium’s investment, this helps promote both of our missions by improving science literacy and empowering the next generation of conservation leaders. At CIMI, this means visiting school groups will get firsthand experience with cutting-edge marine technology and real-time ocean data as they explore and protect the kelp forests of Catalina.
Clockwise: CIMI Instructor, Roxy, assisting with buoy deployment; Graphic showing the integration of Spotter buoy data and diver collected data (figure modified from AquaLink.org); Graph showing the changes in wave height and wave period for June 8-9, 2025; Graph showing changes in the surface temperature (darker blue) and the bottom temperature (lighter blue) for June 8-9, 2025. See the Video of the Spotter Buoy.
To see today’s ocean temperature and wave activity at CIMI Toyon Bay go to Our Data page.
