The Chesapeake Bay of 400 years ago and the present crossed paths yesterday morning at the mouth of the Patapsco River, when a replica of Capt. John Smith's boat passed by where a bobbing transmitter will tell the story of the explorer and the water around it.
The wooden shallop, powered by oar and sail, was on its way to Baltimore, 76 days into its own summer-long Chesapeake voyage of discovery and tribute to Smith's exploits.
Bright yellow and powered by the sun, the "smart buoy" has instruments to help scientists monitor the health of the bay, aid navigation and act as an electronic tour guide for a new national park.
The buoy, the third deployed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, will provide real-time information about bay water quality and weather conditions.
All three markers are transmitting information about area historical and cultural highlights as part of the new 3,000-mile Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail, the country's first all-water historic trail.
"This is a fascinating marriage of technology and history," said Peyton Robertson, acting director of NOAA's Chesapeake Bay office. "By comparing the observations of Captain Smith with what these smart buoys are finding, we can get a good picture of where we've been and where we need to go."
John Johnson, a spokesman for Verizon Wireless, a partner in the project, said the marker's telemetry acts like a huge floating cell phone, providing a high-speed link to other cell phones and personal computers. The information can be used by boaters, vacationers, educators and students.
A crane on an Army Corps of Engineers work boat swung the buoy over the side, gently lowering it into an area known as Seven Foot Knoll as applause rang out from a spectator boat. The buoy, which began broadcasting data while sitting on the work boat deck, kicked into high gear as its sensors touched the water.
Using buoys for more than navigational assistance is not new. The "Eyes on the Bay" program of the Department of Natural Resources uses more than 50 shallow-water monitoring stations on the Chesapeake and its tributaries and four on the coastal bays. Ten of them supply hourly updates to mddnr.chesapeakebay.net.
"With real time, we can capture data and see trends developing. When we see a fish kill, we can more quickly and accurately determine the cause and the source," said Bruce Michael of DNR's Tidewater Ecosystem Assessment Division.
