flotsametrics
n. The use of floating debris to study ocean currents.
Etymology
Examples
2009
Flotsametrics: The use of floating trash, such as a huge consignment of training shoes washed off a cargo ship in 1990, to study ocean currents.
—“Viewfinder: Opinions from around the world,” New Scientist, April 22, 2009
2009
Visionary oceanographer Curtis Ebbesmeyer will discuss the brand new science of "flotsametrics" and show how thousands of little yellow ducks revolutionized ocean science.
—“Sat: Curtis Ebbesmeyer (Flotsametrics),” The NightHawk Zone, April 11, 2009
2003 (earliest)
SIEGEL: A very well-traveled little bit of plastic there. How do you follow them around all the seas as they make their way?

Dr. EBBESMEYER: Well, I have a worldwide network of beachcombers who report in, and every quarter I summarize what they say, so there are eyes and ears around the world looking for things that fall out of cargo ships.

SIEGEL: Is this called flotsamology?

Dr. EBBESMEYER: Well, flotsametrics.
—Robert Siegel & Dr. Curt Ebbesmeyer, “Curt Ebbesmeyer discusses how he tracks plastic ducks at sea,” All Things Considered (NPR), July 08, 2003
Notes
This term is still linked to its coiner, the oceanographer Dr. Curt Ebbesmeyer, meaning that mentions of the word still reference either Dr. Ebbesmeyer or his book, Flotsametrics and the Floating World. I usually don't cover a term until it gets "unlinked" from its coiner and is freely roaming the culture, but flotsametrics is just too good a word to pass by. A tip of the Word Spy fedora to reader Sharon Ede for passing this one along.
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