An award has been made to the Organization for Tropical Studies, Inc., for the acquisition of a multi-modal sensor array for environmental data collection in rainforest research. The array will consist of mobile towers equipped with sensors to record data on several spatial scales from the ground to the rainforest canopy. The system will comprise three parts: a study plot for intensive measurements, a set of platforms at various heights in the canopy, and a rapidly deployable array for studies in different areas. The sensors arrays will be accessible remotely from the Internet and throughout the study are in a wireless network. Data streamed from the sensors will include information on light, temperature, humidity, wind velocity, and long and short wave radiation, which will characterize the microclimate of the rainforest. These data will be used by scientists and students conducting research on site. The data will be used in projects on tropical ecology and physiology of plants and animals, seasonality of growth and reproduction in the rainforest. The field station hosts several hundred students each year in a variety of field ecology courses, as well as workshops for visiting researchers. Students from underrepresented groups are recruited through several educational programs for the summer and academic year.
