St. Kitts and Nevis received three SOFAR Spotter buoys to strengthen marine monitoring, forecasting and coastal resilience as part of a wider Caribbean initiative.

Two buoys were designated for waters around St. Kitts and one for Nevis, expanding the region’s marine-observation network. The solar-powered instruments provided near-real-time data on wave height, wave period, atmospheric pressure and sea-surface temperature, while one buoy also measured temperatures at different depths.

Senior Meteorological Officer, Elmo Burke spoke about its importance:

 Mariners are urged to keep 10 to 20 metres away from the buoy configuration to avoid damaging the equipment.

The initiative was funded by the European Union through the Caribbean Development Bank, with the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology serving as the executing agency. St. Kitts and Nevis was the fourth participating country to receive the equipment.