[LUM#9] Maupiti, a Model Lagoon

[LUM Magazine] - Published on March 12, 2019 in Science and Society

Understanding the dynamics of the lagoon and the reef is the goal of researchers from the Géosciences Montpellier laboratory, who have set out to install sensors and probes on the island of Maupiti in French Polynesia.

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Welcome to Maupiti, a small paradise island of just 11 km² located a stone’s throw from Bora Bora in French Polynesia. Far from mass tourism, it’s a dream destination for those seeking tranquility… and for coastal scientists and geophysicists from the Montpellier Geosciences Laboratory and GLADYS. “With its enclosed lagoon, where water flows out through a single channel, Maupiti is an ideal model for studying lagoon dynamics,” explains Frédéric Bouchette. “In particular, we can characterize how waves pass over the coral reef and how wave energy is transformed into currents, water levels, and transport.”

To understand the dynamics of the lagoon and the reef, researchers conducted two expeditions to Maupiti in May and from June through August 2018. Pressure, currents, temperature, wind, water level, waves, topography—the island was dotted with sensors and probes that allowed researchers to study the system in detail. In addition, the expedition provided an opportunity for new methodological developments: “We wanted to verify whether a seismometer was capable of detecting the sound of waves on the beach itself, ” explains the researcher. “ The island is the ideal size: it’s small and sparsely populated, so seismic noise is minimally disturbed by human activity,” notes Erik Doerflinger, “but it still has the necessary infrastructure to support mission logistics.”