Ship-towed Magnetometers

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution has two types of sea surface magnetometers for use on its vessels. One is a Geometrics Model 866, which is a standard proton precession type of magnetometer that has been a mainstay sensor in the US research fleet for past few decades. Our new sensor is a Marine Magnetics Seaspy nuclear precession sensor which uses the "Overhauser effect" to obtain an absolute measurement of Earth's magnetic field intensity. These sensors are typically towed approximately 300 meters behind the ship. These sensors are operated as part of the WHOI ship's normal geophysical equipment roster. Please contact the WHOI Shipboard Science Services Group (SSSG) for operations on WHOI ships. For other operations please contact the MISO facility, which has sensors for use on other vessels.

For more information on the ship-towed magnetometers, contact:

WHOI SSSG
sssg@whoi.edu

How they work
Follow this link below for more details on how ship-towed marine magnetometers work.