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Lakes and reservoirsLakes and reservoirs, watched for the next bloom.
Lakes and reservoirs supply drinking water, irrigation and recreation, and they can turn harmful in a few warm, still days. Buoys measuring temperature, oxygen and algae through the water column, inflow and level stations and satellite views of blooms give suppliers and lake managers early warning, and a record that explains each season.
Plan a deploymentHow it worksStation Builder- Industry
- Water
- Measurements
- 5
- Sources cited
- 5
Water · Lakes and reservoirs
A lake can turn in a week
Lakes and reservoirs stratify as summer warms them; oxygen falls at depth and algae grow near the surface. A few warm, still days can bring a harmful bloom that affects drinking water and closes beaches. Continuous measurement through the water column gives suppliers and managers the days they need to act.
What is measured
Through the water column
Thermistor chains measure the temperature profile and stratification; sondes measure oxygen, chlorophyll and phycocyanin near the surface and at depth; stations measure inflow, outflow and level; a weather station records wind and sun; satellite imagery maps surface blooms across the lake.
- Instruments
- Thermistor chains · Sondes · Level and flow · Weather · Satellite imagery
The base node
A node on the buoy
The buoy’s node reads every sensor, signs each value and computes stratification and bloom indicators. It raises a sampling alert when indicators rise, keeps the full record on board for recovery and reports summaries to shore. Every value carries its depth.
Radio and links
Cellular from the lake, LoRaWAN on the shore
Most buoys report over cellular; tributary and shore stations report through a LoRaWAN gateway on the shore; remote lakes use satellite IoT for buoy summaries. The buoy stays the same whatever the path. Coverage is measured at each mooring before deployment.
- Links
- Public cellular · LoRaWAN · Satellite
How it works
From a sonde to an intake decision
A rise in phycocyanin near the intake is read by the buoy’s node, signed and sent to shore. It joins the stratification profile and satellite maps; the supplier receives an alert, schedules confirmation sampling and adjusts intake depth or treatment with the evidence in hand.
From order to operation · Order
Scope the lake and its uses
The scope reads how the lake is used, its history of blooms and the rules for drinking water and bathing. Nexus Observatory Inc. returns a buoy and station plan, the sampling and alert workflow and a price per lake and per season.
Plan a deploymentFrom order to operation · Survey
Survey depths, intakes and inflows
Crews survey the lake’s depth, intake positions, main inflows and shore access with the supplier and lake manager, measure coverage and choose mooring positions clear of navigation. Depth soundings confirm each mooring position, and shore sites are chosen for the gateway and the weather station with year-round access.
From order to operation · Permits
Moorings and navigation
Buoys need the consent of the lake owner and, often, navigation marking. Public advice arrangements are agreed with the health authority before the season. Agreements also set which data is shown to the public during the bathing season and who updates it, so advice and data always match.
From order to operation · Build
Build and calibrate buoys
Buoys, sondes, thermistor chains, nodes and shore stations are built, calibrated and tested, each enrolled with its identity and position, with spare sondes prepared for exchange. Mooring designs account for the lake’s depth, wind fetch and ice, so buoys hold position through storms and can be recovered safely.
Open the Station BuilderFrom order to operation · Install
Moor before the season
Buoys are moored before the warm season at the deep point and near intakes, inflow and outlet stations are installed and the shore link is tested. Each position is recorded and photographed. The first profile cast is taken beside each buoy on the day it is moored.
From order to operation · Commission
Commission against profiles and samples
Each node proves its identity, then readings are compared with a calibrated profiler cast and laboratory samples. Alert levels for oxygen and algae are agreed and tested to the supplier and lake manager. Results are signed into the record before the season’s alerts are switched on.
From order to operation · Operate
Act before the bloom
The console shows stratification, oxygen and algae indicators with satellite bloom maps. Rising indicators trigger confirmation sampling; suppliers adjust intakes and treatment, and authorities issue advice with the evidence attached. Each alert records the sample result that confirmed or cleared it, so alert levels can be tuned season by season.
From order to operation · Maintain
Clean, exchange and recover
Sondes are cleaned and exchanged on schedule during the season, and buoys are recovered before ice or storms. Each season’s record joins the long series that explains the lake’s change. Recovered sondes are checked against standards, so drift during the season can be corrected in the record.
Book field servicesData products
For suppliers, managers and the public
Suppliers receive bloom indicators near intakes; lake managers see stratification and oxygen; health and bathing water authorities receive alerts; agencies and the public see bloom maps; planners receive seasonal reports. Each product carries its calibration and quality codes. Each comes from the same signed readings.
See the data productsEvidence
A season that can be explained
Calibrations, profiler comparisons, laboratory results, every alert and every action are signed and kept. Monitoring supports the water framework and bathing water rules, and series follow open water data standards, so each season’s decisions can be reviewed against the data.
- Drawn against
- Directive 2000/60/EC · Directive 2006/7/EC · WMO-No. 168
What you get
Hydrometeorological and flood observing networks
Stream gauges, rain gauges, weather radar and automatic weather stations built to WMO practice, reporting through WIS 2.0 where the agency requires it. Delivered as hardware + software, managed service and build-operate-transfer, for national meteorological and hydrological services, river-basin agencies, utilities.
Talk to salesNext step
Plan lakes and reservoirs with us
Tell us the site, the measurements and the rules it answers to. We reply with a survey proposal, a design and a scope for lakes and reservoirs. An engineer replies with a survey proposal and a scope, and the plan grows from one site to the network you need, at your pace.
Plan a deploymentOpen the Station BuilderOpen the Studio
01The place and its hazards
Where it runs, and what can go wrong.
Operating contextLakes and reservoirs stratify in warm seasons, with oxygen falling in deep water and nutrients feeding algae near the surface. Harmful cyanobacteria blooms can affect drinking water treatment and close bathing sites. Water suppliers adjust intake depth and treatment, and lake managers act on nutrient inputs and public advice under water quality and bathing water rules.
Hazards
- Harmful algal blooms and toxins
- Low oxygen in deep water and fish kills
- Taste, odour and treatment problems at intakes
- Nutrient loads from catchments
- Low levels in drought
02What must be measured
What, where, how often, and under which rules.
Each measurement names where it is taken, how often, and the public standard or regulation behind it. Numbers in the sources column open the cited source below.
| Measurement | Where | Cadence | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Temperature profile and stratification | Buoys with thermistor chains at the deepest point and near intakes | Continuous | 1 |
| Dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll and phycocyanin | Buoy sondes near the surface and at depth | Continuous | 12 |
| Inflow, outflow and level | Main tributaries, outlets and the lake | Continuous | 3 |
| Surface bloom extent | The whole lake, from satellite imagery | Each cloud-free pass | 4 |
| Weather over the lake | On the buoy or shore | Continuous | 5 |
03The observation stack
From one base unit to a network.
The same blocks at every scale: instruments and a base node, a site with its radio, a fleet run as one, and a network federated on the open protocol.
- 01
Base unit
A buoy station: sondes, a thermistor chain and a weather station read by a solar node that signs every value.
Build a station → - 02
Site
A lake: buoys at the deep point and intakes, inflow and outlet stations and a shore link.
Plan a site → - 03
Fleet
Every lake and reservoir of a supplier or agency run as one fleet, with one seasonal record.
Managed offers → - 04
Network
Water suppliers, environmental agencies and health authorities share federated records and public advice.
The open protocol →
- 01Moored buoy
- 02Water quality sonde
- 03Compact weather station
- 04Micro node (Nano)
- 05Cellular modem/router
- 06Solar array
- 07Battery case
Radio and links
Public cellular
Most lakes are within cellular coverage, the simplest path from the buoy.
Radio and links
LoRaWAN
Tributary and shore stations report through a gateway on the shore.
Radio and links
Satellite
Remote lakes use satellite IoT for buoy summaries.
Edge computeThe buoy’s node computes stratification and bloom indicators, raises sampling alerts and keeps the full record on board.
PowerBuoys run on solar and batteries through the season; shore stations use solar or site power.
04How it works
From the instrument to the product.
One observation’s path, tier by tier, with the interface on every link and a bill of materials below; then how the one node grows to a site, a fleet and federated networks.
Lakes and reservoirs: data path
– of 06
01 Instruments Measurement with sensor identity andcalibration 02 Node – Wrap in an observation envelope with timequality– Measure quality and uncertainty, attachquality flags– Buffer locally (store-and-forward when thelink drops) 03 Backhaul Commit with transactional outbox andpublish, delivered at least once 04 Site Consumer inbox deduplicates and applieseach record once into governed data 05 Data store Governed product through API, map orexport, correction-aware 06 Products OGC SensorThings APIOGC WaterML 2.0MQTT 5 07 Power and structure Supplies 12 V DC to the field equipment 01 Moored buoy RS-485 · SDI-12 02 Water quality sonde SDI-12 · RS-485 · Ethernet 03 Compact weather station SDI-12 · RS-485 · Ethernet 04 Micro node (Nano) Ethernet · USB · Analogue I/O ·RS-485 · CAN 05 Cellular modem/router Ethernet · USB · RS-232 Site MQTT 5 with Sparkplug B Governed data store Versioned, correction-aware Stratification and oxygen series Bloom indicators and alerts Satellite bloom maps Seasonal lake reports 06 Solar array RS-485 07 Battery case USB RS-485 RS-485 RS-485 Ethernet LTE/NR| Item | Equipment | Data ports | Protocols | Power in |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Moored buoyMoored buoy platform carrying met-ocean sensors, with solar power and satellite or cellular telemetry. | RS-485SDI-12 | MQTT 5, OGC SensorThings API | 12 V DC |
| 02 | Water quality sondeMulti-parameter sonde for temperature, conductivity, pH, dissolved oxygen and turbidity. | SDI-12RS-485Ethernet | SDI-12, Modbus, MQTT 5, OGC SensorThings API | 12 V DC |
| 03 | Compact weather stationAll-in-one or compact station for temperature, humidity, pressure, wind and rain at a site. | SDI-12RS-485Ethernet | SDI-12, Modbus, MQTT 5, OGC SensorThings API | 12 V DC |
| 04 | Micro node (Nano)Single-board or module-class node for sensor sites, gateways and low-power deployments. | EthernetUSBAnalogue I/ORS-485CAN | MQTT 5, OMA LwM2M, CoAP | PoE, 12 V DC, USB PD |
| 05 | Cellular modem/routerLTE or NR modem or router that uses a public carrier or private network as backhaul. | EthernetUSBRS-232 | 3GPP E-UTRA air interface, 3GPP NR air interface, OMA LwM2M | 12 V DC, PoE |
| 06 | Solar arrayPV modules with charge controller sized to the site’s load and climate. | RS-485 | Modbus | — |
| 07 | Battery casePortable battery pack with DC outputs for field kits. | USB | Modbus | AC mains, HV DC, USB PD |
How it scales
01 Instruments Arbitrary qualified sensors and instruments whosemeasurements are ingested with calibration, units,geometry, time, custody and uncertainty. ×n 02 Node The minimum useful deployable unit: server, ruggedappliance, radio node, sensor gateway, satelliteterminal, AI, scientific, vehicle or virtual node. Node Node agent 03 Site The minimum independently operable localgovernance and failure domain: one or more nodesplus local network, identity, policy, evidence,storage, products and operator surfaces.SITE
Node Node Node ×n 04 Cluster An optional scale or specialisation domain forscheduling, shared storage, accelerators or datalocality.CLUSTER
×n 05 Fleet Coordinates plans, acknowledgements,convergence evidence, update campaigns andcorrection propagation across nodes and sites.FLEET
Fleet controller ×n 06 Federation An exchange of products, capabilities, events orwork across approved, independently administeredtrust domains, using explicit trust, policy,data-locality, version and correction contracts.TRUST DOMAIN
TRUST DOMAIN
TRUST DOMAIN
×n Verifier Applications Data in the field Telemetry Control Data upstream Control Data upstream Control Exchange Evidence Events Exchange- Data in the field
- MQTT 5 with Sparkplug B; connectors for LoRaWAN, OPC UA and instrument buses.
- Telemetry
- OpenTelemetry OTLP.
- Control
- TLS 1.3 with mutual authentication; protobuf messages over gRPC or HTTP/2.
- Data upstream
- At-least-once publication with repeat-safe keys over the control channel or NATS JetStream; QUIC MAY be used on lossy links.
- Evidence
- DSSE-signed in-toto statements; SLSA provenance; SCITT transparency receipts.
- Events
- Event envelopes mapped to CloudEvents 1.0; channels described in AsyncAPI 3.
- Exchange
- OpenAPI 3.1; the OGC API family; SensorThings; STAC; WIS 2.0.
05From order to operation
Every step, from the first call to a running site.
The same crew and the same record carry the work from scope to maintenance.
- 01 Order
Scope the lake and its uses
The scope reads how the lake is used, its history of blooms and the rules for drinking water and bathing. Nexus Observatory Inc. returns a buoy and station plan, the sampling and alert workflow and a price per lake and per season. 2
- 02 Survey
Survey depths, intakes and inflows
Crews survey the lake’s depth, intake positions, main inflows and shore access with the supplier and lake manager, measure coverage and choose mooring positions clear of navigation. Depth soundings confirm each mooring position, and shore sites are chosen for the gateway and the weather station with year-round access.
- 03 Permits
Moorings and navigation
Buoys need the consent of the lake owner and, often, navigation marking. Public advice arrangements are agreed with the health authority before the season. Agreements also set which data is shown to the public during the bathing season and who updates it, so advice and data always match.
- 04 Build
Build and calibrate buoys
Buoys, sondes, thermistor chains, nodes and shore stations are built, calibrated and tested, each enrolled with its identity and position, with spare sondes prepared for exchange. Mooring designs account for the lake’s depth, wind fetch and ice, so buoys hold position through storms and can be recovered safely.
- 05 Install
Moor before the season
Buoys are moored before the warm season at the deep point and near intakes, inflow and outlet stations are installed and the shore link is tested. Each position is recorded and photographed. The first profile cast is taken beside each buoy on the day it is moored.
- 06 Commission
Commission against profiles and samples
Each node proves its identity, then readings are compared with a calibrated profiler cast and laboratory samples. Alert levels for oxygen and algae are agreed and tested to the supplier and lake manager. Results are signed into the record before the season’s alerts are switched on.
- 07 Operate
Act before the bloom
The console shows stratification, oxygen and algae indicators with satellite bloom maps. Rising indicators trigger confirmation sampling; suppliers adjust intakes and treatment, and authorities issue advice with the evidence attached. Each alert records the sample result that confirmed or cleared it, so alert levels can be tuned season by season.
- 08 Maintain
Clean, exchange and recover
Sondes are cleaned and exchanged on schedule during the season, and buoys are recovered before ice or storms. Each season’s record joins the long series that explains the lake’s change. Recovered sondes are checked against standards, so drift during the season can be corrected in the record.
06Data products and integration
What it delivers, to whom, and into which systems.
Data products
- Stratification and oxygen seriesLake managers and suppliers
- Bloom indicators and alertsSuppliers, health authorities and bathing water managers
- Satellite bloom mapsAgencies and the public
- Seasonal lake reportsPlanners and catchment managers
Integration
- Treatment plant controlIntake-depth quality data reaches treatment operators through the historian.
- Agency databasesSeries are exchanged through OGC standards with quality codes.
- Public adviceAdvice follows the health authority’s channels, with agreed data shown publicly.
Exchanged through OGC SensorThings API, OGC WaterML 2.0, MQTT 5.
07Questions buyers ask
Before you scope it.
Do sensors measure toxins?
No. Sensors show algae indicators; toxins are measured from samples, which the alerts help time.
What happens in winter?
Buoys are usually recovered before ice; shore stations keep reporting where possible.
Can satellite imagery replace buoys?
It maps surface blooms over the whole lake, but cannot see below the surface or through cloud; buoys provide the profile.
Who issues public advice?
The health or bathing water authority, using the evidence the network provides.
08Resources
The sources behind this page.
Public standards, regulations and guidance, cited where they apply. Each applies only where its jurisdiction or scope does.
- 1Directive 2000/60/EC establishing a framework for Community action in the field of water policyEuropean Union · 2000
- 2Directive 2006/7/EC concerning the management of bathing water qualityEuropean Union · 2006
- 3Guide to Hydrological Practices (WMO-No. 168)World Meteorological Organization
- 4Copernicus Sentinel-2 optical missionEuropean Space Agency
- 5Guide to Instruments and Methods of Observation (WMO-No. 8)World Meteorological Organization
09Related
Use cases and solutions.
Use caseWave buoy coastal array
Low-cost moored wave buoys with satellite telemetry, deployed as an array along a coast or port approach.The full use case →SolutionHydrometeorological and flood observing networks
Stream gauges, rain gauges, weather radar and automatic weather stations built to WMO practice, reporting through WIS 2.0 where the agency requires it.Solutions for water →SolutionBiodiversity and habitat monitoring
Acoustic sensors, camera traps that exclude people, eDNA sampling logistics and EO habitat change for nature programmes and disclosures.Solutions for water →10Water: specialized fields
Other fields of this industry.
Specialized fieldRivers and flood warning
River level and flow, rainfall and cameras at gauging stations, flood forecasts and warnings issued by the authority, on links that keep working when the river rises.The full field →Specialized fieldGroundwater and aquifers
Water levels, salinity and abstraction in monitoring and production wells, on battery endpoints and LoRaWAN, for aquifer management, licensing and drought planning.The full field →Specialized fieldDrinking water treatment and networks
Water quality from source to tap, pressure and flow by district, acoustic leak detection and treatment plant monitoring, on secure networks kept apart from plant control.The full field →Specialized fieldWastewater and sewer networks
Sewer levels and overflow events, pumping station status, treatment plant effluent and receiving water quality, to cut overflows and prove compliance.The full field →Bring us the site.
Plan a deployment, configure a station, model it in the Studio or talk to sales. The form names who receives your details.
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