MTR 100: NOAA ... Working at the Interface of Exploration and Education

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is the only federal agency with a program dedicated to exploring the deep ocean, closing gaps in our basic understanding of U.S. deep waters and the seafloor, and delivering the ocean information needed to strengthen the economy, health, and security of our nation. Inspiring and engaging the next generation are fundamental to the operations…

US Eyes 100-strong Mideast Sea Drone Fleet

The United States Navy and security partners will patrol Middle East waters with 100 unmanned vessels next year to improve deterrence against attacks, like those presented by Iran, the U.S. Fifth Fleet commander said on Monday.The region is vital for global trade, especially oil supplies that flow out of the Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz.There have been high-seas confrontations between U.S. and Iranian forces with attacks on oil tankers in Gulf waters in 2019.

Researchers Study Unique Arctic Channel

A scientific study describes for the first time the submarine cartography of a high-latitude system in a channel covers tens of kilometers in the northern western area of the Barents Sea, in the Arctic Ocean. The Interfan Bear Island and Storfjorden (IBIS) channel is one of the few submarine valleys in polar latitudes that kept its geological architecture during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), according…

CGG Announces Largest Ever Seabed Survey

French geoscience company CGG said it will perform its largest seabed survey to date in the UK Central North Sea.Prefunded in part by BP, the multi-client ocean-bottom node (OBN) seismic survey has already received significant industry interest, CGG said. Operations are scheduled to begin in early 2020, with first results targeted for the first quarter of 2021.

New Site Hosts Corps’ Hydrographic Survey Training

What do hydrographic surveys ― the scientific measurement and description of physical features at the bottom of bodies of water ― have to do with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and marine construction? In a word, plenty.Francis Postiglione, chief of the New York District's Survey Section, Operation's Division, said, "Surveying is at the root of all projects in coastal and inland waterways," adding…

Tethys Robotic's new ROV Leverages Nortek DVL Tech

A new Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) from Switzerland’s Tethys Robotics is aiming to provide a safer alternative to putting divers in the water, utilizing Nortek DVL to complete its navigation solution.Jonas Wüst, CEO at Tethys Robotics, set out to meet these challenges of working efficiently, safely underwater following a student research project at Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich (ETH Zurich), a public university in Switzerland.

HII Expands Portchester, UK Facility for Unmanned Systems

HII, a leading manufacturer of autonomous surface and underwater unmanned vehicles, has doubled the size of its unmanned facility in Portchester, U.K.The enlarged facility enhances and strengthens the company’s presence in the United Kingdom and increases capacity and support for the U.K. Royal Navy and European partners that operate the REMUS line of unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs).In addition to supporting regional unmanned customers…

David Kennedy Designated as Chair of US Arctic Research Commission

On March 3, 2021, President Joe Biden designated David Kennedy as Chair of the United States Arctic Research Commission (USARC), an independent federal agency that advises the President and Congress on Arctic Research. Kennedy succeeds former Chairman Jon Harrison, who continues to serve as a commissioner on the USARC.“I’m honored to be entrusted by President Biden with the responsibility of leading the USARC…

TechnipFMC Scores Contract for BP's Atlantis Phase 3

TechnipFMC announced Wednesday it has been awarded an engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCI) contract by BP for the Atlantis phase 3 project in the Gulf of Mexico.TechnipFMC did not specify the exact value of the contract, but said the deal is worth between $75 million and $250 million.BP announced its plans to move forward with its $1.3 billion Atlantis phase 3 development…

Klein Selects Greensea Inertial Navigation

Klein Marine Systems chose Greensea Systems to provide SWaP-C optimized inertial navigation for its side scan sonar towfish products. The Greensea INSpect GS products use Greensea’s open architecture operating platform, OPENSEA, and a patent-pending heading alignment methodology.“We chose the Greensea INSpect GS product family due to the price/performance alternatives offered as well as the additional sensor options that it supports,” said Dean Fleury, Director of Engineering for Klein.

NNHO Expands Bathymetric Capabilities

Nigerian Navy Hydrographic Office establishes new bathymetric capabilities with CARIS softwareThe Nigerian Navy Hydrographic Office (NNHO) has selected Teledyne CARIS to provide solutions for both current and future national and international charting requirements. Equipped with CARIS Ping-to-Chart technology, the NNHO is establishing new capabilities for bathymetric analysis, and completion of hydrographic and other geospatial data.

IUEM Chooses iXblue Equipment

Navigation, positioning and underwater imaging solutions provider iXblue said it has been chosen by the European Institute for Marine Studies (IUEM) to provide 8 Canopus long baseline (LBL) transponders for a geodetic mission off the coast of Sicily. Deployed on the seabed, 2,500 meters below the surface, the Canopus transponders will measure the crustal deformation along the North-South Alfeo faults with a millimeter-scale resolution over the course of four years.Hubert Pelletier…

Abundant Life Found on Seamounts Off Chile’s Coast

An international group of scientists, led by Dr. Javier Sellanes of the Universidad Católica del Norte, may have discovered more than 100 new species living on seamounts off the coast of Chile. The recent Schmidt Ocean Institute expedition resulted in finding deep-sea corals, glass sponges, sea urchins, amphipods, squat lobsters, and other species likely new to science.The team explored seamounts along the Nazca and Salas y Gómez Ridge…

Snow & Company Building New Research Vessel for Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Seattle shipyard Snow & Company has started building a new 15m hybrid catamaran research vessel for operation by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.The Incat Crowther designed vessel will be powered by an advanced parallel hybrid-electric propulsion system, consisting of two Volvo Penta D8-510 main engines, capable of producing 374 kW each, supplemented by two Danfoss Editron EM-PMI375-T200-2600 motor-generators.

Seatools Gets Fengmiao 1 Offshore Wind Job from CDWE

Seatools, a subsea technology company, has secured a contract by CSBC-DEME Wind Engineering (CDWE) for the design, engineering, and delivery of the metrology and control system for the Pre-Piling Template (PPT) at the Fengmiao 1 Offshore Wind Farm in Taiwan.The Fengmiao 1 wind farm will feature jacket-type foundations installed using pre-installed pin piles.Seatools’ metrology and control system will…

Mocean Energy Starts Tank Testing Models for 250kW Wave Energy Machine

Mocean Energy has started tank testing models of its 250kW Blue Horizon wave energy machine as part of the EU-funded EuropeWave program.The Edinburgh-based wave power company is of seven technology developers awarded contracts for phase 1 of the €20 million R&D scheme, which will ultimately see three prototype technologies tested at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) in Orkney and the Biscay…

Case Study: Autonaut Put to the Test

‘AutoNaut completes a 16-week, 4,000-mile mission gathering PAM, ADCP, CTD, and wave data on the Atlantic continental shelf break.’  AutoNaut ‘Oban’ arrives quietly into Penzance after waiting out Storm Arwen off Mount’s Bay. The 115-day voyage covered 4,000 nautical miles gathering data on the Atlantic shelf break from the Hebrides to Cornwall.A proving trial for ‘AutoNaut for Extreme Environments’ in autumn 2021 saw the 5m uncrewed surface vessel (USV) spend 16 weeks at sea and cover over 4…

NOAA, Fugro Partner to Accelerate Deep Ocean Mapping and Characterization

NOAA Ocean Exploration and Fugro have signed a cooperative research and development agreement (CRADA) to develop and use uncrewed systems for ocean exploration to enhance the efficiency, reach and impact of NOAA’s mission to explore the deep ocean. This collaboration unites NOAA’s scientific and operational excellence with Fugro’s technological expertise to expand ocean exploration capabilities. By focusing on uncrewed systems…

VIDEO: Ocean Infinity's Armada 7801 Robotic Vessel Reaches Norway

Ocean Infinity's Armada 7801 has reached Norway after a long journey from Vietnam, where its hull was built last year at the Vard Vung Tau shipyard."Our first new ship has arrived in Norway, having set sail on its maiden voyage from Vietnam in November. Installation of the payload equipment and remote systems will now commence ahead of the ship entering service on offshore data acquisition tasks in the coming months…

New CO2 Sensor Added to Seaglider

Researchers at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) and their industry partners have advanced the technology available to measure carbon dioxide in the ocean.Their design, published in the journal Ocean Science, is now available to the scientific community.During the past six years, a team from the UAF International Arctic Research Center and private companies developed a way to equip an unmanned, underwater vehicle called a Seaglider with a sensor that monitors carbon dioxide.