Since inception, OCS moorings have been equipped with a variety of data collection systems, which transmit data to Seattle via satellite communications.

TELOS

The Telemetry, Electronics & Logging of Oceanographic Sensors (TELOS) is a data acquisition system currently in development at PMEL as of 2026. To date, several TELOS test moorings have been deployed, including a mooring at station ALOHA (2019) and at Ocean Station Papa (2023).

In 2025, a TELOS system featuring a full suite of meteorological sensors was deployed on the Papa buoy alongside a Flex system to test full integration. Ultimately, the TELOS system is slated to replace the existing systems, allow for higher resolution measurements (and transmissions), and expand the measurement suite to include more powerful, accurate, and modern sensors.

Flex

The Flex data acquisition system is a custom-engineered system developed at PMEL. Flex became the primary data system for all instrumentation on OCS moorings in 2014, though it has been deployed as a secondary system since 2007, and has been the primary system for subsurface data transmissions since 2008. Hourly averages of all measurements are returned to shore via Iridium satellite. Higher resolution data are logged internally, and downloaded once the mooring is recovered.

Beginning in 2014, a redundant Flex system is deployed on OCS moorings, replacing the outdated ATLAS system. This redundant system supports a full secondary suite of meteorological sensors, and serves as a back-up in case of damage or loss of any part of the primary Flex system.

ATLAS

The OCS moorings began as adapted ATLAS moorings, using primary technologies originally developed by PMEL in 1994. The ATLAS (Autonomous Temperature Line Acquisition System) system is identical to that used by the TAO array of tropical moorings. These systems telemetered spot values and daily-averages of the primary meteorological sensors when a satellite signal was available, via the Service Argos satellite communication system. Data were also recorded internally at higher time resolutions. ATLAS data acquisition systems were the "primary" data loggers used on OCS moorings through 2013. Beginning in 2014, the ATLAS system was replaced with a second Flex system.

MApCO₂

A MApCO₂ system is deployed on OCS moorings to evaluate the variability in air-sea CO₂ fluxes by measuring the CO₂ levels of the atmosphere and of the surface waters. This is an automated sampilng system, developed at PMEL, which collects gas samples from the atmosphere to make CO₂ partial pressure (pCO₂) measurements that are traceable back to World Meteorological Organization (WMO) standards. Measurements are generally taken every three hours and transmitted back to Seattle via Iridium. More information on the worldwide array of MApCO₂ systems may be found on the PMEL Carbon Group web page.