Walter Munk: 1917-2019

Walter Munk, who gave the Allies a strategic edge in World War II, helped nurture a university into existence, and became a living synonym for oceanography, died February 8 at his home in La Jolla, Calif. He was 101.As a geophysicist at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California San Diego, Munk made groundbreaking observations of waves, ocean temperature, tidal energy in the deep ocean, ocean acoustics and the rotation of the earth.

CGG and TGS Partner for Greater Castberg Survey

CGG and TGS announced Monday they will conduct a 5,000 sq km survey of the Greater Castberg area in the Barents Sea.The project is supported by industry funding, and the survey will include the highly prospective Castberg area and cover existing and newly awarded licenses in addition to open acreage with several play models in multiple geological layers.The acquisition is expected to commence late…

Seatools Unveils New Deepwater Excavator

Subsea technology company Seatools has introduced the Carrera E 3D motion-controlled precision flow excavation spread. The 630+ kW, all-electric deepwater excavator features Seatools’ advanced ROV DP technology and sets the stage for better accuracy, production and workability in the mass flow excavation (MFE).Seatools developed the Carrera E mass flow excavation spread leveraging its capabilities in heave compensation and ROV control technologies.

New Marine Navigation System at Port Freeport

Port Freeport, located outside of Houston, is now fitted with a NOAA system that improves safe and efficient marine navigation. The technology is part of a nationwide network called Physical Oceanographic Real-Time System, or PORTS.Freeport PORTS is the 38th system in this network of precision marine navigation sensors. The integrated series of sensors track oceanographic and meteorological conditions as they unfold around the port.

NOC Secures £11M for Early Warning Systems

Scientists at the UK’s National Oceanography Center (NOC) are to lead critical research into forecasting a significant climate tipping point – the potential collapse of the Atlantic Subpolar Gyre. Through more than £11 million in funding from the UK’s Advanced Research + Invention Agency (ARIA), NOC will lead the development of novel and innovative new ways to detect early warning signs of a change in the Atlantic Subpolar Gyre.Sitting just south of Greenland and Iceland…

MTR100: EvoLogics GmbH

EvoLogics GmbH is a German-based high-tech enterprise. The company was founded in 2000 by a group of international scientists and R&D experts aimed to develop innovative key technologies for the maritime and offshore industries through interdisciplinary cooperation between engineering and life sciences.EvoLogics GmbH designs and manufactures underwater information systems and novel robotic solutions based on bionic concepts, combining cutting-edge engineering with the best ideas found in nature.

Torqeedo Provides Electric Propulsion System for Inland Shipping Research Vessel

Torqeedo has provided an electric propulsion system for a new research vessel, “NOVA”, operated by the University of Duisburg-Essen (UDE) and the Development Center for Ship Technology and Transport Systems (DST). The autonomous research vessel will operate on the Rhine, exploring ways to make inland shipping more environmentally friendly and efficient.The 15-meter-long “NOVA” is an inland vessel with a twin-hull design. It will be capable of transporting both cargo and passengers.

Subsea: Argeo Builds the Tools to Bridge the Data Gap

Argeo is an offshore service company, created in 2017 and on the move, driven by its mission to transform the ocean surveying and inspection industry via autonomous surface and underwater robotics solutions. We recently caught up with Argeo CEO Trond Crantz for a far-reaching discussion on the company and its recent innovations in the surface and underwater vessel sector, as well as insights on its digital platforms and patented electromagnetic sensor systems.

BAE Systems and Cellula Robotics to Run XLAUV Pilot in 2024

British defense contractor BAE Systems said it is teaming up with Canadian marine technology company Cellula Robotics to showcase the capabilities of its new extra large autonomous underwater vehicle (XLAUV), known as Herne, on a technology demonstrator in the water in the second half of 2024.As acts of subsea aggression and threats to the underwater domain persist, autonomous platforms like XLAUVs…

Rolls-Royce Command & Control Solution For New PSV

The first installation of Rolls-Royce's Unified Bridge will feature in Simon Møkster Shipping's new Platform Supply Vessel. As offshore ships have become more technologically advanced and able to perform more highly specialised duties, their bridges, as the command centres for the ship, have become more complex. The Rolls-Royce Unified Bridge has been designed to deal with this issue based on both our own research and feedback from customers.

Armach Robotics Launches EverClean Hull Cleaning Service

Armach Robotics, Inc. announced the launch of EverClean - a new service delivering always clean hulls for ship owners and operators, with the added value of perpetual hull condition monitoring.Following a successful period of demonstrating the effectiveness of its hull cleaning robots with commercial shipping operators, EverClean enters the market amid heightened demand for cost-effective and sustainable…

Seatools Debuts Subsea Compensator Range

Dutch subsea technology company Seatools has introduced its new subsea hydraulic compensator range: the Advanced series. This new subsea compensator range, based on the preceding Hyco range, delivers improvements in robustness, durability and standardization, according to the manufacturer. Seatools, a specialist in subsea hydraulic systems, said it performed an extensive development trajectory that led to the Advanced series.

Shape-shifting Underwater Robot Unveiled

A Texas based tech company started by team of former NASA roboticists has unveiled a new multipurpose underwater robot unlike any other on the market.Aquanaut is a new subsea vehicle that employs a patented shape-shifting transformation from an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) to a remotely operated vehicle (ROV), removing the need for vessels and tethers.According to Aquanaut’s developer Houston Mechatronics…

Lowrance Debuts High Powered HDS Multifunction Displays

Lowrance announced today the release of a high-performance addition to the HDS series of fishfinders/chartplotters – Lowrance HDS Carbon. The new Lowrance HDS Carbon adds a high-performance dual core processor, multi-touch SolarMAX HD screen, dual channel CHIRP and Network Dual Sounder to the proven features that have made HDS multifunction displays the choice of anglers at all levels. The HDS Carbon series includes 12-, 9- and 7-inch models.

NCS Subsea, Partners Begin Geohazard Survey Project

NCS SubSea and partners secure industry underwriting for SAFE-BAND with the first multi-client geohazard ultra-high-resolution 3D (UHR3D) survey in the Gulf of Mexico. The first phase of Acquisition starts June 1, 2014. NCS Subsea, GeoTrace and SpecPartners announced the start date for a multiphase large scale innovative project called SAFE-BAND. It will be the first multi-client geohazard survey on a regional scale utilizing Ultra-High-Resolution 3D Seismic (UHR3D).

Product Spotlight: FLEXUS More than an ROTV

MacArtney introduced FLEXUS, a new data acquisition system. Based on a simple and rugged, yet flexible remotely operated towed vehicle, the FLEXUS composes a versatile and user friendly system suitable for a multitude of oceanographic, monitoring and survey applications. Like the more advanced MacArtney TRIAXUS and FOCUS-2 ROTV systems, FLEXUS is based on a towed vehicle featuring a broad range of innovative features and benefits.

Survey: O&G Research Spending to Increase

New research from Lloyd's Register Energy explores the drivers for technology and innovation in the global oil and gas industry. The Technology & Innovation Radar survey results are released today, May 5, 2014, from booth #2173 at the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) in Houston by Lloyd’s Register Energy. It provides insight into the adoption and development of new technologies which are fundamental for the advancement of the Oil and Gas sector in addressing the global demand for energy…

US Coast Guard Tests Environmentally Friendly Buoy Moorings

The U.S. Coast Guard uses navigational buoys to direct water traffic and to protect vulnerable benthic ecosystems such as seagrass communities and coral reefs in U.S. waters. However, most buoys are currently attached to the seafloor by concrete anchors, also called sinkers, and heavy metal chains that can have a significant impact on marine life. Sinkers can damage life on the seafloor under their heavy footprint…

MacArtney Upgrades MMT FOCUS-2 Systems

MacArtney has performed a major upgrade of two FOCUS-2 ROTV systems belonging to Swedish marine survey contractor and specialist, MMT. Both vehicles have been fitted with new state-of-the-art equipment to carry out geophysical survey missions for clients within oil, gas and renewable energy industries. Complementing the side scan sonar and sub bottom profiler already onboard, the MMT FOCUS-2 systems have been fully equipped with a multi beam echo sounder…

Underwater Glider Goes Searching for North Atlantic Right Whales

JASCO Applied Sciences and Teledyne Webb Research have teamed to deploy a Slocum G3 underwater glider fitted with JASCO’s OceanObserver intelligent acoustic monitoring system in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence.With the support of Dalhousie University and the Ocean Tracking Network, the glider was deployed September 15 in the Orpheline Channel on a six-week test mission to attempt to detect and record North Atlantic right whales.