The recent development of environmental sensor networks offers unprecedented opportunities to advance our understanding of ecosystems. High-frequency data collected across expanded temporal and spatial scales provide a new frontier for examining ecological dynamics, and advances in sensor technology are revealing previously unobservable phenomena. Simultaneously, collaborations between ecologists and scientists from other disciplines are stimulating innovative hypotheses and analytical approaches. In particular, the role of aquatic sensor networks will become increasingly important in future research, as lakes are sensitive indicators of land use and climate change. The aim of this session is to highlight innovative science facilitated by the use of remotely-deployed, high-frequency aquatic sensors. Scientists utilizing these tools will present their findings from single systems, as well as analyses from networks of sensored systems. We will highlight discoveries and active research from the Global Lake Ecological Observatory Network (www.gleon.org), an international grassroots network of limnologists, ecologists, information technology experts, and engineers who have a common goal of building a scalable, persistent network of lake ecology observatories. Specifically, GLEON collaborations have catalyzed advances in measuring lake metabolism, understanding the effects of episodic disturbances, and the application of lake modeling to ecosystem forecasting. We will also highlight examples of ecologists who have used high-frequency data to engage the public in monitoring and conservation projects. As both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems worldwide become increasingly ‘sensored,’ GLEON demonstrates the potential of applying high-frequency data to understand ecological phenomena in the face of global change.