Three climate monitoring and maritime safety buoys have been deployed for the season from the south shore of Lake Superior.

The Superior Watershed Partnership (SWP) staff deployed the buoys with boat support provided by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore (NPS). The locations of these buoys are near the shorelines of Marquette, Munising and Grand Marias.

The Marquette buoy is one half-mile northeast of Black Rocks off Presque Isle; the Munising buoy is five miles north of Miners Castle, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore; and the Grand Marais buoy is one and a half miles north of the harbor.

In 2021, the SWP received $47,786.80 in grant funding through the Great Lakes Observing System (GLOS) to purchase these new, innovative buoys. SWP continues to deploy, maintain, and retrieve them yearly.

Each of the three monitoring buoys collects important navigation and climate planning data. This includes wave height, wind speed, water temperature, and more. The live data provided by these buoys is critical for commercial and recreational boaters as well as for the National Weather Service, Environment Canada, and NOAA. 

In addition, the SWP uses buoy data for long-term climate adaptation planning with coastal communities in the Upper Peninsula.

Data is transmitted and accessible via the GLOS Seagull website or through the SWP’s website.