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E1-M3A (Cretan)

W1-M3A (Ligurian)

E2-M3A (Adriatic)

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Overview
During the first phase of the Mediterranean Forecasting System (MFS) a prototype system for real time measurements of physical and biochemical measurements at fixed locations was designed and developed. This prototype system, the so-called Mediterranean Moored Multi-sensor Array (M3A) was in preoperational use during 2000 providing multiparametric data from the Cretan Sea (Eastern Mediterranean).The development of the prototype M3A was based on the experience of the TAO array of the Equatorial Pacific and the Bermuda Testbed Mooring, combining the operational capabilities of the Atlas moorings with the multiparametric configuration of the BTM system.More details about this configuration can be found at the M3A site.

The M3A sites
The prototype M3A (E1-M3A) will continue its operation in the Cretan Sea (south Aegean Sea, 35.66 N, 24.98 E), an extremely oligotrophic area where dense waters with intermediate and deep characteristics are formed.
The 2nd system (E2-M3A) will be deployed in the southern Adriatic Sea (41 2 N, 17 5 E), at about 1200 meters depth, another well-known area of dense water formation through open-sea convection. The center of the Southern Adriatic is an area where vertical mass transfer (upwelling, winter convection) has a rather prominent role in distributing physical and chemical water properties and controlling the primary production (transfer of nutrients in the euphotic zone). Upwelling is determined by the intensity of the cyclonic circulation that in turn depends on the climatic conditions over the area. The site is therefore appropriate for moored measurements since it is possible, under certain circumstances, to neglect contributions of lateral advection processes.
The 3rd system (W1-M3A) will be deployed in the Ligurian Sea of the Western basin one of the most dynamically active and productive areas within the whole Mediterranean (43 49 N 9 07 E). A permanent cyclonic circulation with seasonl and interannual variability triggered by the Tyrrhenian current dominates the area. During the winter, processes of dense water formation often occur. This is an area that has been monitored for several years in terms of surface atmospheric parameters. It is convenient now to add the remaining sensors and make the system compatible with the M3A general design.