AUV Tracking System Tested in Loch Ness
A collaborative research project called Autonomous Surface and Sub-surface Survey System (ASSSS) aims to deliver an integrated system to provide a means of conducting low cost, shore based, full water column marine surveys using multiple unmanned systems. The project, part funded by Innovate UK, hopes to encourage wider adoption of unmanned systems.The project is being led by a U.K. based developer of unmanned and autonomous marine systems, ASV Global. It combines the advantages of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) and autonomous surface vehicles (ASVs) to further data gathering opportunities.
Efficient Cable Installation Slashes Emissions at Johan Sverdrup
The laying of the cable supplying Johan Sverdrup with power from shore started last week. This helps make the North Sea giant one of the oil and gas fields with the lowest CO2 emissions worldwide.On Wednesday last week the cable-laying vessel NKT Victoria began laying the cables that will supply the Johan Sverdrup field with power from shore.The starting point was the Johan Sverdrup converter station at Haugsneset near Kårstø, and by the end of May the vessel will have laid nearly 200 kilometers of power cables out to the field in the North Sea.Bundled with the power cables, a fiber-optic
Interview: David Millar, Fugro
we not just support, but also actively engage in Seabed 2030. As a global company operating in and on the oceans, our participation is socially responsible, contributes to ocean stewardship and, quite simply, is the right thing to do.It is our belief that Seabed 2030 will not eliminate the need for our marine site characterization services, but rather increase its demand. Only through a comprehensive mapping of the ocean will areas of interest become known, and we fully expect that within those areas of interest, Fugro’s high resolution mapping services will still be required to support our customers&rsq
Submarine Excursions Now Available in the Maldives
Relax by the pool, sip a cocktail on the beach, explore the marine environment in a submarine . . .Guests at the Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Landaa Giraavaru are able to go beyond the typical vacation experience with an underwater flight excursion aboard the three-person DeepFlight Super Falcon 3S, a submarine designed specifically for underwater tourism.For $1,500.00 (+12% GST) per flight, a trained submarine pilot will take up to two guests below the surface to explore the beautiful Maldivian waters in DeepFlight Adventures’ newest 8-meter sub. Over the course of an hourlong dive, passengers
TE SubCom Launches New NOC Solution
into operational flow. Cable operators depending on the long-term viability of their networks will now have global 24x7x365 monitoring coverage and both high-level and regional visibility into their networks’ status. SubCom’s NOC solution has already been selected for the Monet Submarine Cable, a 10,556km cable that is owned and operated by Algar Telecom (a Brazilian telecom company and ISP), Angola Cables (a multinational telecom company operating in the wholesale market), ANTEL (the Uruguayan telecom company) and Google. In the U.S., this new 6-fiber-pair cable system was landed
Machines Infused with AI that Fly, Swarm and Dive
and more than one semifinalist team in the Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE is developing solutions that will feature biomimicry behaviors to build intelligent swarms, hives, and heavy lift drone solutions that that can fly back and forth from the deep ocean competition mapping site. Eauligo and the Marine Bees Team Lead: Christopher Lewis To compete in the Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE, the France-based Eauligo team has taken its inspiration from nature and plans to launch a horde of miniature robotic submarines that will mimic bee behavior. Watching bees going from flower to flower in a garden,
Hawaiki Transpacific Cable Set for Installation
The undersea fiber-optic cable and equipment for the 14,000 km Hawaiki transpacific cable system have been manufactured and are in the final stages of being loaded aboard cable laying vessels for deployment to beginning in early October. The Hawaiki submarine cable system, owned and developed Hawaiki Submarine Cable LP, will link Australia and New Zealand to the mainland United States, as well as Hawaii and American Samoa, with options to expand to additional South Pacific islands. The carrier-neutral cable system was co-developed by New Zealand-based entrepreneurs Sir Eion Edgar, Malcolm
Safety Zone Management Assurance for Offshore Installations
An Aberdeen-based maritime specialist has launched 500m Zone Management assurance and auditing for offshore Installations following the success of its training courses for offshore installation personnel to help address safety concerns. Seacroft Marine Consultants has developed a new assurance process to continue to monitor operational safety standards after providing initial training to help installations manage ship movements when they come close to platforms. It is the latest development from the leading marine assurance providers which builds upon training it launched earlier
Klein's Side Scan Sonar, Then and Now
The company known today as Klein Marine Systems, Inc. has origins stretching back to the 1960s when Marty Klein, who many consider to be the father of side scan sonar, began building his own devices from his home in Lexington, Mass. As this iconic subsea technology company approaches 50, MTR speaks with Marty Klein as well as Klein Marine System’s general manager, Frank Cobis. When did you realize you were destined for a career in the subsea world? Marty Klein: Wow. It started back in 1961 when I was a senior at MIT and I had to do a thesis. I like to build things, but I
Sonardyne Awarded Contract from Magseis
Sonardyne International Ltd., UK said it has secured a contract from Magseis to supply seabed node acoustic positioning technology to support an expansion in the Norwegian seismic services company’s deep water survey activities. The equipment ordered includes a large quantity of Sonardyne’s newly developed SST 6 (Small Seismic Transponder 6), and associated vessel-based acoustic positioning system, Ranger 2 USBL (Ultra-Short BaseLine). The hardware will be installed and operated by Magseis’ latest crew which is scheduled to be fully operational during the second
Track Cables and Pipelines with an AUV
missions using survey tool Smartrak from U.K. based INNOVATUM Ltd. The company designs, manufactures and operates compact, low-powered magnetic cable and pipeline tracking systems. INNOVATUM said recent tests have successfully demonstrated fully autonomous passive magnetic tracking of a submarine cable by AUV, using Smartrak. INNOVATUM has released the AUV data protocol for a standard communications format between Innovatum Smartrak and AUVs. The data protocol allows operators and AUV manufacturers to prepare AUVs for cable and pipe tracking tasks. The data protocol document is available
Swathe Services to Represent Planck Aerosystems in the UK
Swathe Services said it has entered into an agency agreement with Planck Aerosystems to represent the San Diego based autonomous drone company in the U.K. Planck Aerosystems is a drone company that enables autonomous operations from moving vehicles on land or at sea. The company’s specialized Shearwater unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) can be deployed in a matter of minutes, with minimal user training and experience. With powerful onboard computing capabilities, long range digital communications and intelligent computer vision software the Planck solution provides a safer, faster
The Quest to Find and Explore USS Indianapolis
. In the early hours of July 30, 1945, having just completed a secret mission to deliver materials from California for the first operational atomic bomb, “Little Boy” to a naval base on the Pacific island Tinian, Indianapolis was en route from Guam to Leyte when it was torpedoed by Japanese submarine I-58. Indianapolis sank quickly – reportedly in just 12 minutes – leaving little time for the crew to deploy lifeboats or for an emergency signal to be sent. It is estimated that 800 of the nearly 1,200 Sailors and Marines on board survived the sinking, but a communication error
Unmanned Forces: Building a Multi-Domain Autonomous Fleet
out into commercial markets where they are commonly used for surveillance, survey and delivery tasks. In maritime, autonomy is progressing to sectors outside of the early adopter mine countermeasures (MCM) domain, such as oceanography and oil and gas. Unmanned systems have cr opped up in various marine industries whether that is assisting warfighters in MCM operations, marine researchers and projects in the commercial maritime industry. However the MCM community is by far the biggest end user of unmanned maritime systems which are equipped with varying levels of autonomy. While several steps have
New Remotely Operated Hydrographic Survey Boat
Teledyne Oceanscience has introduced a new remotely operated hydrographic survey boat suited for inland waters such as streams, rivers and lakes. The new trimaran style Z-Boat 1250 is “sturdy enough for tough terrain but light enough to be one person portable,” according to Teledyne. The vehicle has a lightweight hull manufactured from acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) plastic, and is IP67 rated, which makes it well suited to survey in most water conditions. The vehicle weighs in at less than 50 pounds, including all instrumentation. A collapsible sliding crossbar makes the
TE SubCom Announces Contract for Jupiter Cable
service providers, has announced that the supply contract for the JUPITER Cable system has come into force. Scheduled to be ready for service by early 2020, the JUPITER Cable system will connect the following locations: Maruyama, Japan; Shima, Japan; Los Angeles, California, USA; and Daet, Camarines Norte, Philippines. The new transpacific route will provide greater diversity of connections and enhanced reliability for customers, as well as optimal connectivity to data centers on the West Coast of the United States. “The demand for bandwidth in the Pacific region continues to
Partners to Deliver Precision Tide and Current Data
Tidetech Commercial Marine Pty Ltd, a provider of metocean data to the merchant marine market has agreed to a partnership with Weather Decision Technologies, Inc, a decision support and weather analytics company. Tidetech is a specialized provider of detailed oceanographic information to the shipping and offshore industries with expertise in modelling tides and currents for coastal regions and global ocean routes. Under the agreement Tidetech will make its marine data available as a free demo within the WDT WeatherOps risk mitigation system until the end of November after which
New ASV Delivered to University of Southampton
where a smaller vehicle is better suited to missions. The design incorporates a large payload bay to enable payload flexibility. The vessel has a modular, lightweight design for ease of transport and mobilization. Its shallow draft and payload capacity make C-Cat 3 suited shallow survey and marine science applications. C-Cat 3 is powered by two electric motors and can be controlled manually or to follow preprogrammed routes that can be updated at any point through a PC based GUI. The C-Cat 3 includes the core functionality proven in all ASV Global vessels and systems, autonomous
Tuco to Build Hydrographic Survey Boats for Denmark
Tuco Marine Group said it has signed a contract with DALO (The Danish Defense Acquisition and Logistics Organization) to deliver two bespoke hydrographic survey boats to replace two existing survey vessels that have become obsolete. The new vessels, based on Tuco’s ProZero concept, have been designed to allow full use of the latest technology for hydrographic surveys. The boats are designed to accommodate two hydrography specialists in addition to a dedicated helmsman. The hull has been specially adapted to address two challenges that are hard to solve at once: on the one hand
Lockheed Martin to Design an Extra Large UUV for the US Navy
The U.S. Navy has awarded a $43.2 million contract to Lockheed Martin for the design of its next autonomous underwater vehicle. The Extra Large Unmanned Undersea Vehicle (XLUUV) Orca is a two phase competition, including the currently awarded design phase and a competitive production phase for up to nine vehicles to meet increasing demands for undersea operational awareness and payload delivery. Lockheed Martin said it will design long-range autonomous vehicle to perform a variety of missions, enabled by a reconfigurable payload bay. Key attributes include extended vehicle range
MUM's the Word: New UUV Takes Shape in Germany
propulsion system to allow for deep dives and long range duration. “The world’s oceans present a wide range of tasks and questions that cannot yet be addressed because we don’t have the appropriate vehicles and systems," said Marc Schiemann, project manager at thyssenkrupp Marine Systems. "MUM offers a wealth of new options for industrial marine engineering and scientific ocean research. We will equip the floating, wireless underwater vehicle with an air-independent fuel cell propulsion system. Our goal is to develop a vehicle which allows diving depths of up to 5,000m
MTS Tech Breakfast: Maritime Cyber Security
series is an opportunity to bridge the gap between how MTS and Federal Government Agencies work and communicate. This member-exclusive event brings together industry thought-leaders and MTS members to facilitate the discovery of innovative and practical solutions to policy challenges surrounding marine technology. The future of maritime cyber security is an important topic for government, industry and academia. In the inaugural event for the MTS Maritime Cyber Security & Infrastructure Committee (MTS Cyber), the Technology Innovation Breakfast will explore the future of maritime
Wärtsilä Introduces its Smart Marine Ecosystem Vision
the changes taking place in the shipping industry to deliver value and optimisation for its customers. By orchestrating these developments through the use of high levels of connectivity and digitalisation, Wärtsilä intends to lead the industry’s transformation towards a Smart Marine Ecosystem. “The world is moving towards a future that is more and more connected, and nowhere is this more apparent than in the shipping sector. The opportunities offered through smart technology will foster a new era of collaboration and knowledge sharing with customers, suppliers
K-MATE Autonomy Controller Put to the Test
Supported by KONGSBERG experts and technology, the GEBCO-NF Alumni Team, one of 19 semi-finalist teams competing in the $7 million Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE competition, has completed technology readiness tests of its unique unmanned surface vessel (USV) / autonomous underwater vessel (AUV) concept and associated combination of communications hardware and software to process and transmit data remotely. The test event was held on the fjord outside KONGSBERG’s factory in Horten, Norway on Thursday, November 23. All Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE teams will hold testing site visits around
Kawasaki Tests Prototype AUV in UK Waters
sophisticated underwater vehicle technologies fostered in-house over the years, with support from a subsidization project by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT). The AUV verification test was carried out from November 6 to 20, 2017 at The Underwater Centre, a marine testing and training facility in Fort William, Scotland. Tests at sea used a prototype AUV and a charging station, and included automated docking of the AUV to the charging station, contactless charging, and large-capacity optical communication operations. During the testing period, representativ
Parallel Events Add Depth to Oceanology International
professionals to highlight demonstrable technological achievements that are aiding exploration and research while stressing the ongoing importance of technological progress.” Complementing Oceanology International 2018’s conference program, Ocean ICT Expo will address the demand for marine and ocean IT, communications, satellite and data storage solutions, with hundreds of highly targeted experts on hand. An additional seminar area will host presentations from global software, hardware and communication services professionals, applying ICT solutions to assist growth in ocean data acquisitio
Students Bring Robotics to US Naval War College
A group of students from the robotics teams at Slater Junior High School and Shea High School from Pawtucket, R.I. visited U.S. Naval War College (NWC) on Tuesday, December 12. The students brought two robots which they designed and built to NWC to demonstrate to the NWC students, staff and faculty how they operate and what tasks each robot could complete. Beginning in 2013, the goal of the Slater and Shea's robotics team was to increase the number of students who may choose to pursue high-tech careers in the engineering and technology fields. Robotics introduces the
Optimizing the Tides
and the commercial rollout of tidal projects across the world. An example of this is the recent announcement of Tocardo’s first offshore tidal array with four one Megawatt Universal Floating Structures (UFS) in Canada’s Bay of Fundy, in collaboration with Minas Energy and International Marine Energy Inc (IME). In late 2017, four 250kW-rated T2 bi-directional turbines were deployed in the Minas Passage within the bay. The turbines will be attached to Tocardo’s semi-submersible Universal Floating Platform Structure to form a 1MW system held in place by catenary mooring systems
Orsetd, Formerly Dong Energy, Sued over Name Change
The descendants of Danish scientist Hans Christian Orsted will take legal action on Friday against one of Denmark's biggest companies over its decision to change its name to Orsted, their lawyer said. DONG Energy, the world's largest developer of offshore wind farms, in October renamed itself Orsted as part of its shift to renewable energy from oil and gas. DONG was short for Danish Oil and Natural Gas. It said the new name, chosen from more than 3,000 alternatives, was inspired by 19th century Danish physicist Hans Christian Orsted, who discovered electromagnetism. But three direct descendants
Oceanology International '18: Conference Schedule Finalized
respective fields, and the potential for enlightened, galvanizing discussion and the cross-fertilization of progressive ideas is genuinely exciting.” The conference program gets under way on Tuesday, March 13, 2018 with a Hydrography, Geophysics & Geotechnics track,chaired by Andy Hill, Marine Geohazard Technical Authority at BP Exploration, and Richard Salisbury, Senior Consultant at Fugro. This session will discuss data collation and examination methods used in mapping offshore seabed and sub-seabed environments, highlighting the benefits such studies confer upon the renewables, oil
Nor-Shipping: Opening Oceans in Denmark
Global maritime event week Nor-Shipping is making its first move outside Norway, with a new initiative to help maritime and ocean industry players realize the almost limitless business potential of the ocean space. Nor-Shipping’s Opening Oceans Conference, taking place in Copenhagen from May 2-3, 2018, will bring businesses together to illustrate and discuss key opportunities, equip delegates with the tools to tackle them, and facilitate fresh collaborations. Timed to coincide with Danish Maritime Days, Opening Oceans Conference is supported by both the Norwegian Shipowners’ Association
Ten Institutes Join the Nereus Program
in its field. Principle investigators from eight out of the 10 newly joined universities and institutes gathered in Tokyo last December to partake in an international symposium titled “Limits of Oceans”. They discussed a range of topics including major effects of climate change on marine ecosystems; seafood dilemma of health benefits vs. health hazards from contaminants; and modern slavery in the fishing industry. Yohei Sasakawa, Chairman of The Nippon Foundation noted the sense of crisis: “A sustainable ocean is of the utmost importance for people. If current conditions
Premier Oil Looking into PB3 PowerBuoy
Premier Oil inks contract to study the use of the PB3 PowerBuoy for offshore decommissioning operations Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. (OPT) said it has signed an agreement with an international oil and gas company Premier Oil to conduct a three-month study into the feasibility of using OPT’s PB3 PowerBuoy for decommissioning operations in the North Sea. The PB3 PowerBuoy uses ocean waves to provide clean, reliable and persistent electric power and real-time communications for remote offshore applications. The contract outlines work that will determine the viability of
Teledyne Releases CAN Bus Active Flying Lead Configurations
Teledyne Oil & Gas has added the CAN bus communication protocol to its Active Flying Lead product family. The subsea oil and gas industry has standardized to "fault tolerant" CAN bus communications for sensors and other subsea controls. This variation has a limited transmission distance for single node or sensor systems of only 40 meters. Teledyne has recently qualified three new configurations that extends the range of the CAN bus signal to up to 5,000 meters. The Active Flying Lead product line is characterized by integrating specialized electronics into qualified highly reliable
GD Mission Systems: Full-throttle Charge toward Autonomy
Carlo Zaffanella is vice president and general manager of Maritime and Strategic Systems (M&SS) for General Dynamics Mission Systems. The M&SS business includes submarine and surface ship electronic systems integration as well as the design, build and support of a broad array of subsurface, surface, air, airport and strategic subsystems, meaning he is perfectly positioned to lead MTR’s ‘vehicles’ edition, as in 2018 our attention turns from a specific products and systems, to the holistic web of connectivity between subsea, surface, land-, air- and space-based assets.
Remotely Operated Fireboat Under Development
announced a collaboration to develop a new remotely-operated fireboat that will allow first responders to attack dangerous port fires more aggressively and safer than ever before. The un-crewed RALamander fireboat will offer in-close firefighting and ‘eye in the fire’ capability that keeps marine firefighting professionals out of harm's way. Fires involving containers, petrochemicals, shore-side structures or vessels can be attacked more quickly in situations where toxic smoke or explosion risk may delay or even prevent manned assets from responding effectively. RALamander can serve as a
PicSea: A New Concept for Ocean Autonomy
is to create a Google Maps underwater, but for now, it’s about promoting diverse solutions and getting more people to ask themselves how do we collect ocean data and make it faster, lower cost and less risky? PicSea is the answer.” (As published in the January/February 2018 edition of Marine Technology Reporter
Expanded Waterfront for Oi18
for Oceanology International visitors, this year’s dockside and on-water demo programme has been expanded and will now comprise daily demonstrations to offer an even more valuable experience for those attending, whilst allowing exhibitors to share their product’s effectiveness in a marine environment. Exhibitors taking part in demonstrations for the dockside area of Oi18 have been confirmed as Braveheart, Briggs Marine & Environmental Services, CMS-Geotech Ltd, Deep Trekker, iXblue, Nord Slovakia, Norbit, R2Sonic, RTsys, Seafloor Systems, Sonardyne, Sound Metrics Corporation
MUM's the Word: New UUV Takes Shape in Germany
to drive the subsea vehicle market further faster courtesy of a project known as the Large Modifiable Underwater Mothership, or MUM. “Today’s AUVs are usually limited with regard to energy, payload capacity and autonomy,” said Hendrik Wehner, Design Engineer, thyssenkrupp Marine Systems. “For a sole autonomous movement of the ships, smart software solutions are needed. Our partners from University of Rostock and ATLAS ELEKTRONIK are setting the pace there. Large autonomous underwater platforms that can be configured around a payload do not yet exist. MUM will be engineered
Seas to Continue Rising Even if Climate Goals Are Met
Sea levels will rise between 0.7 and 1.2 metres (27-47 inches) in the next two centuries even if governments end the fossil fuel era as promised under the Paris climate agreement, scientists said on Tuesday. Early action to cut greenhouse gas emissions would limit the long-term rise, driven by a thaw of ice from Greenland to Antarctica that will re-draw global coastlines, a German-led team wrote in the journal Nature Communications. Sea level rise is a threat to cities from Shanghai to London, to low-lying swathes of Florida or Bangladesh, and to entire nations such as the Maldives in the Indian
WFN: Cable Route Survey Support for Kativik
Strategies has been awarded a contract by Kativik Regional Government, a supramunicipal body with jurisdiction over the territory of Québec situated north of the 55th parallel of Canada, to provide cable route survey support for the proposed Eastern Arctic Undersea Fiber Optic Network (EAUFON) submarine telecoms cable system. EAUFON is a planned submarine cable with landing points at multiple communities in Canada’s Nunavik region. The EAUFON submarine cable system has an initial Ready For Service date of 2020 with multiple extensions planned subsequently. Although final
US, Thai, Korean Navies Working Together Underwater
Underwater construction teams (UCT) from the U.S. Navy, Royal Thai Navy and Republic of Korea Navy are training and operating together on the Thung Prong Bay Sattahip Navy Base in Thailand throughout the 37th annual Exercise Cobra Gold, which ends February 23. "We are here to perform underwater inspection techniques and also to talk about maintenance plans," explained U.S. Navy Construction Mechanic 1st Class Matthew Ramirez. The main operation of the day for the UCTs was the inspection for the deterioration of Thrung Prong Pier, which was originally built in the 1970s and
WiSub’s Universal AUV Connector
needs for repeatable reliable connection. Torden also took home its own Spotlight award in May of 2017, confirming that the industry continues to see great value in pin-less underwater connector solutions,” concludes Bokenfohr. (As published in the January/February 2018 edition of Marine Technology Reporter
An Industry in Change
press releases announcing the launch of new, innovative products. ‘First time ever’ is an almost daily term I encounter within my inbox. There have been hundreds of companies starting up recently in the unmanned space over the last decade, and Hook believes we will continue to see more in the marine sector in the decade to come. Hook said, “There will be a healthy amount of these innovative ideas that are either ahead of their time or got surpassed by something else, so they will drop off. But there is certainly room for more innovation to enter the industry yet. At the
Digital Ocean: Making Subsea Data More Easily Accessible
The digital ocean is a reality and U.K.-based digital communications marine technology firm Sonardyne International Ltd is one of the organizations driving innovation to enable the extension of electronic and communications connectivity into the subsea domain. Based on a presentation given by Tom Rooney, Lead Trainer at Sonardyne, at the Digital Ocean conference held in Galway, Ireland in June 2017, this article describes the current state of play in the subsea acoustics and optical communications technology field, presents examples of the many ways these technologies are being applied and considers
US Navy Submarines Surface in the Arctic Circle
A pair of U.S. Navy submarines recently surfaced in the Arctic Circle as part of multinational maritime exercise north of Alaska. Los Angeles-class fast attack submarine USS Hartford (SSN 768) and Seawolf-class fast attack submarine, USS Connecticut (SSN 22) surfaced in the Arctic Circle March 10 during the multinational maritime Ice Exercise (ICEX) 2018. Both submarines, as well the UK Royal Navy submarine HMS Trenchant (S91), are participating in the biennial exercise in the Arctic to train and validate the warfighting capabilities of submarines in extreme cold-water conditions
L3 OceanServer Unveils Iver PW AUV
L3 OceanServer announced its new Iver Precision Workhorse (Iver PW) autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV). The new Iver PW is the first in a family of highly capable commercial AUVs to address a wide variety of customer missions, including survey research and mapping, sub-surface security, and environmental monitoring. “Undersea missions are evolving, and L3 is uniquely positioned to develop military and commercial solutions using next-generation processing, autonomy and power technologies to enable new capabilities and missions,” said Daryl Slocum, General Manager of L3 OceanServer.
Next Generation AutoNaut USV Unveiled
ideas to the development.” “The versatility of the 5-meter is key,” said Phil Johnston, Business Development. “With so many options for the sensor payload it’s a game-changer in terms of how we can provide solutions for clients, whether in oil and gas, defense or marine science.” See the new 5-meter AutoNaut USV on stand A251 at Oceanology International, ExCeL London, March 13-15, 2018.
ADCPs: Action in OOI's Cabled Observatory
; Sound waves propagate through the water column so echoes are returned and processed from many depths. The vertical range of this collection of measurements - called a profile of ocean current velocities - is greater for lower frequency sound waves. Introduction Thanks to a spirited cadre of marine scientists and engineers, high-tech ocean observatories are now operational. These sites provide a continuous presence in the ocean for sustained and interactive observing. Many combine innovative infrastructure with multi-discipline marine sensors. Installed at various depths, these observatorie
Expanded Underwater Robotics Ready for Oil Spills
(UPCT), 2University of Porto, Underwater Systems and Technology Laboratory (LSTS), 3University of Zagreb, Laboratory for Underwater Systems and Technologies (LABUST), 4University of Cyprus, Oceanography Centre, 5SASEMAR, Spanish Maritime Safety Agency, 6Irish Coast Guards, 7The Scottish Association for Marine Science - SAMS, 8Tallin University of Thechnology - TUT, 9University of Girona - UG, 10University of the Balearic Islands - UIB, 11Norges Teknisk-Naturvitenskatelige Universitet – NTNU, 12Marine Technology Unit CSIC. Tracking in-water oil spills before reaching the surface
UW’s New Research Vessel Ready for Work
The University of Washington School of Oceanography took delivery of the former R/V Aora last August in Hartlepool, England after purchasing the vessel from a private party. The vessel, renamed R/V Rachel Carson, underwent a drydock maintenance period at MacDuff Shipyard in Scotland and was transported to the Pacific Northwest via two cargo ships. Since the vessel’s arrival at UW on December 28, 2017, UW has been preparing and transforming the former fisheries research vessel into a capable Local Class oceanographic research vessel. R/V Rachel Carson's first research cruise starts
Flynn Signs on to Represent EOM Offshore
its strategic position in the U.S. market with the appointment of John Flynn and Flynn Technical Solutions LLC to serve as its representative in the “Hurricane” states. Flynn’s professional background serving as Technical Sales and VP Global Marketing Communications with various marine-related and technological companies will create synergy and momentum for EOM Offshore, the company said. “EOM Offshore’s innovative technologies bring an exciting new capability for increased reliability for data transmission and health management of moored buoy systems to the market
Riptide Displays Deep-rated UUV at Sea-Air-Space
During Sea-Air-Space in National Harbor, Md., Riptide Autonomous Solutions displayed a new variant of its unmanned undersea vehicle (UUV) product line. This particular vehicle is a deep-rated version to support acoustic telemetry research programs. The deep UUV is rated for 1,500 meters depth but still only 7.5 inches in diameter. Its payloads include CTD, acoustic modem and a custom towed acoustic receiver array. With industry leading low power hotel load this system can still deliver over 48 hours of endurance for field testing. Dan Lawrence, leading the effort for Riptide, noted, “The
Boaty McBoatface Completes First Antarctic Mission
;deep water’ forms near the ice shelf, which is a key driver of global ocean circulation and therefore impacts upon the climate system everywhere on the planet.The PS111 research team involved many different disciplines including oceanography, meteorology, sea-ice physics, bathymetry, geology, and marine biology. Each share an interest in obtaining data from a region that, due to its permanent ice cover, can only be accessed using icebreakers such as the RV Polarstern and AUVs capable of traveling under the ice.This latest mission builds on what Boaty achieved in 2017 when it returned from its first
Vernadsky Medal for Boetius
The AWI director, deep-sea researcher and Max Planck group leader Prof. Dr. med. Antje Boetius receives the Vernadsky Medal for her seminal contributions in the field of biogeosciences and her outstanding research on methane metabolism and the marine carbon cycle. The Vladimir Ivanovich Vernadsky Medal has been awarded by the European Geosciences Union (EGU) since 2003 in recognition of the scientific achievements of Vernadsky in mineralogy and geochemistry. It honors scientists for their exceptional contributions in the field of biogeosciences. Antje Boetius is the first female award winner.
Liodden Named OBR's Sustainability Director
Oslo Business Region (OBR) has engaged Birgit M. Liodden as Director for Sustainability, Ocean Industries and Communication, with effect of May 2018. Liodden will be responsible for OBR’s activities linked to Oslo as European Green Capital 2019, and implementation of sustainability focus throughout all activities. She will also be responsible for ocean industries – a new area for Oslo Business Region – representing vast opportunities onwards. As part of Oslo Business Region’s strategy, sustainability is a key priority area moving forward. OBR considers the UN
Ocean Autonomy: Norway to the Fore
Marine autonomous systems working independently and in connected systems are fast becoming a growth sector within the ocean industry space, including the oil and gas industry.The emergence of new marine autonomous systems appears to be a weekly occurrence. As costs have reduced in numerous areas, from sensors to satellites, some of these systems are also coming within the grasps of ordinary citizens, as well as ocean scientists, looking to unlock the secrets of the deep.Part of the drive for these systems, in the oil and gas industry at least, is to reduce use of manned surface vessels, which are
MacArtney: Custom EMO Multiplexer
Upgrading the subsea survey and camera interfaces of an ROV represents the primary purpose of the MUX having been deployed in Singapore. The requirements for reliable transmission of large amounts of data and video from ROVs, ROTVs, ocean observatories and instrumentation packages are contantly being sharpened. Gathering high-quality data from the deep sea is an im¬mense undertaking, which calls for ensuring that multiple sensor and equipment types work in perfect unison and that all data are efficiently transmitted to the surface for analysis. Custom ROV MUX System A custom
US Navy-owned Research Vessel Back in Action
stem to stern, throughout all five of its decks. It received new cleaner and more efficient diesel engines, the latest navigation and ship-positioning systems, as well as sophisticated sonar, allowing it to map the ocean floor in sharper detail and even differentiate between species of fish and other marine life.The Thompson's laboratories were updated to include advanced IT infrastructure to better support scientific data collection and analysis at sea, while also enabling improved real-time communications with shore. Several critical sensor systems also were replaced, providing upgraded scientific
New Recommended Practice for Wellhead Fatigue Analysis
DNV GL releases new recommended practice for wellhead fatigue analysis to improve analysis consistency in the industry.The recommended practice(RP) DNVGL-RP-E104 Wellhead fatigue analysis has now been published. This publication is the result of a phase 2 Joint Industry Project (JIP) involving 16 oil companies and supersedes the April 2015 edition of DNVGL-RP-0142.The content of the updated RP provides specific recommendations on how to perform wellhead fatigue analysis in a consistent manner, and how to solve what have been considered as the main challenges related to wellhead fatigue analysis.
