New mid-lake buoy for Lake Michigan will measure wind, water, and winged animals

A 289-square-foot floating research platform built in Vancouver, Canada will soon journey to Muskegon, Mich., where Lake Michigan researchers will deploy it to take mid-lake measurements of water quality, wind speed and direction, and bat and bird migration.

Researchers from Grand Valley State University, the University of Michigan, and Michigan State University will use the data.

The buoy measures wind with LiDAR, sends data over a cellular telephone connection, and is powered by solar and wind generators with a diesel generator backup. Researchers will test the buoy in Muskegon Lake and Lake Michigan this fall. After spending winter on land, the buoy will go 36 miles out into Lake Michigan next spring.

Read more at mlive.com.

Image Credit: University of Michigan.