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Exail and UNH open new Maritime Autonomy Innovation Hub

Exail, a global innovator in the field of maritime autonomy, has opened a new innovation hub that will engage in all aspects of marine autonomous operations to help meet the challenges of the growing blue economy.

Exail will be using the new center to deliver increased operational advantage to U.S. civil and government customers. This includes the U.S. production of its Uncrewed Surface Vessel (USV), DriX, the housing of a remote operation center to conduct worldwide remote autonomous operations, establishing local operations, maintenance and training facilities, and providing expertise on maritime autonomy while also training future generations on the use of autonomous vessels.

The new hub will be at the University of New Hampshire, a recognized leader in the field of ocean mapping research, and located within UNH’s Olson Advanced Manufacturing Center in Durham, to facilitate collaborative work with UNH’s Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping (CCOM).

“We’ve been working together with UNH for the past six years pioneering uncrewed technologies, and we are now capitalizing on our common achievements with the opening of this new innovation hub.” States Marine Slingue, President at Exail, Inc. “We’re very proud and excited to take this next step in our U.S. adventure, and we would like to thank UNH, CCOM and NOAA, for their great support, leadership and vision on the use of uncrewed technologies that took us where we are today. We look forward to our continuous partnership with them and all the great work we achieve together to keep advancing maritime autonomy in the U.S.”.

”This exciting collaboration will not only be good for Exail and UNH students and researchers but also good for New Hampshire and the nation,” said Larry Mayer, director of the Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping at the University of New Hampshire. ”We anticipate that it is just the start of bringing many of our other industrial partners and government colleagues to the state as we create a local engine for the new blue economy. ”

The opening of the new maritime autonomy innovation hub was celebrated on July 15th, in the presence of UNH President Jim Dean, U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan and Assistant Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Nicole LeBoeuf.

by Dan Levett

Teledyne Marine launches annual photo and data contest

Teledyne Marine, a global leader in underwater technology, is thrilled to announce the launch of its highly anticipated annual photo and data contest, which invites participants worldwide to capture the breathtaking beauty of the underwater realm through their lenses. Teledyne Marine has a rich history of providing innovative solutions for offshore, academic, and defense applications. The contest is open to Teledyne Marine equipment users, allowing them to showcase their talent and passion for marine and subsea technology.

The Teledyne Marine Annual Photo and Data Contest is set to kick off on July 3rd, 2023, and will run until October 1st, 2023. This contest aims to showcase the remarkable diversity and wonder of the oceanic environment while highlighting Teledyne Marine's cutting-edge products that have revolutionized marine exploration. As part of the contest, Teledyne Marine encourages participants to submit their best images featuring Teledyne products, including, but not limited to, the SeaBat Sonar, BlueView Sonar, RDI ADCPs, Gavia AUV, and Slocum gliders. These cutting-edge technologies have been instrumental in pushing the boundaries of marine research, science, and exploration.

Participants must submit their captivating images via the official Teledyne Marine Photo and Data Contest Page.

How to Enter: 
Step 1 – Visit the contest page for contest rules, upload your image, and include supporting details.
Step 2 – Share the photo / data on your social media channels and encourage friends, family, and industry associates to vote for your submission.  Tag @teledynemarine on Facebook and Twitter. Teledyne Marine will share them as well. The contest is open to Teledyne Marine equipment users; each participant may submit up to three images.

"We are excited to launch the Teledyne Marine Annual Photo and Data Contest and celebrate the wonders of the underwater world," said Helle Auken Lygum, Marcom Manager, Teledyne Marine. "We believe that through the lens of talented photographers and skilled users, we can unveil the beauty and importance of our marine environment while showcasing the technological advancements we have made in underwater exploration."

Teledyne Marine is renowned for its commitment to advancing ocean science and exploration, and this photo and data contest represents an opportunity for individuals worldwide to contribute to this important endeavor. By sharing their images, participants can inspire a global audience and raise awareness about the crucial need for understanding and protecting our oceans.

by Dan Levett

Dalhousie-led research program receives $15-million to investigate how the ocean can be leveraged to mitigate climate change

Dalhousie University has received nearly CAD$15-million from the Carbon to Sea Initiative to lead the Ocean Alk-align research program, a global five-year project that will bring researchers together from around the world to study ocean alkalinity enhancement – an approach for atmospheric carbon removal that aims to mitigate climate change.

The process of alkalinity enhancement is compared to adding an antacid to the ocean, the kind we take for heartburn or when our stomachs are upset. Over the past 200 years, the burning of fossil fuels has increased ocean acidification and reduced its ability to absorb carbon dioxide (CO₂) from the atmosphere. Through targeted enhancement of ocean alkalinity, Dalhousie oceanographer Dr. Katja Fennel and her colleagues will study if they can reverse ocean acidification to make the ocean more receptive to CO₂ absorption.

The Dalhousie-led Ocean Alk-align project is supported by the Carbon to Sea Initiative, a non-profit program funded by philanthropic foundations in the United States, Canada, and Europe. Carbon to Sea seeks to assess the conditions under which ocean alkalinity enhancement can become a safe, cost-effective, and scalable method for atmospheric CO₂ removal. The $15-million CAD grant to Alk-align is the largest funding commitment of the initiative to date.

"Currently, ocean alkalinity enhancement is not a mature technology and its environmental impacts have not been assessed in the field,” said Dr. Fennel, who is the lead principal investigator of the Ocean Alk-align research program. “Our research consortium will tackle the three most pressing research issues: the efficiency and permanence of CO₂ removal, its environmental risks and potential benefits, and the monitoring and verification of CO₂ uptake.”

Dr. Fennel notes it is now widely accepted that global efforts to reduce CO₂ emissions are not enough to veer us off a course toward catastrophic climate change. The United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says to meet these targets, the world needs to remove 10 giga tonnes (equivalent to one billion tonnes) of CO₂ from the atmosphere per year by the middle of the century, and 20 giga tonnes per year by the end of the century. Ocean carbon alkalinity could be a key to meeting these targets.

“If we’re going to avoid the worst impacts of climate change, we need to aggressively reduce emissions and remove carbon from the atmosphere,” said Mike Schroepfer, board chair of Carbon to Sea and co-founder of Additional Ventures, a purpose-driven organization that started and spun-out Carbon to Sea.

“Scientists agree that ocean alkalinity enhancement has enormous potential to permanently remove and store carbon and more funding for research is needed. We are here to respond to the call for research funding and answer basic scientific questions about the safety and efficacy of various approaches to ocean alkalinity enhancement. If we find that ocean alkalinity enhancement can be applied at scale, we can unlock one of the most efficient, cost-effective approaches to carbon dioxide removal for humanity. I’m grateful to the whole network of funders, researchers, partners, and the amazing team at Carbon to Sea for their bold commitment to pursue this work."

As chief principal investigator, Dr. Fennel will facilitate collaborations between Dalhousie and a global team from some of the world’s foremost centres of ocean research, including GEOMAR Helmholtz Center for Ocean Research Kiel and Hamburg University in Germany, and University of Tasmania and Southern Cross University in Australia.

“As a global leader in ocean science, Dalhousie is perfectly positioned to take the lead in this emerging area in the fight against climate change,” said Dr. Alice Aiken, Dalhousie’s vice president research and innovation. “Under Dr. Katja Fennel’s direction, this research program will play a key role in advancing the science of ocean-based carbon removal. It’s a significant opportunity and it’s our responsibility to the world.”

At the end of April, Dalhousie was also announced the recipient of a $154 million grant from the Government of Canada to help fund the Transforming Climate Action research program to study the ocean’s central role in climate change. One of the three major themes of the program is focused on mitigation strategies and ocean-based CO₂ removal in particular. Collaboration between the Ocean Alk-align and Transforming Climate Action research programs has the potential to enhance and substantiate global networks and data sharing with possibilities to significantly magnify impact.

“The math is relatively simple – we need to pair emissions reduction with environmentally responsible carbon dioxide removal solutions. My interest in ocean alkalinity enhancement is rooted in a deep love of the ocean, a recognition that climate change is a catastrophe for marine ecosystems, and the belief that our ocean can be a part of the solution,” said Dr. Antonius Gagern, executive director of Carbon to Sea. “The growing scientific community working on ocean alkalinity enhancement includes the best minds across a range of disciplines, from biogeochemistry to ocean engineering, and is focused on systematically testing this hypothesis.”

Dr. Fennel says it’s essential that researchers outside of the private sector play a central role in determining the future of ocean alkalinity enhancement, noting that an objective approach is required to ensure it is done correctly, if at all.

“It is of utmost importance that these issues are investigated by scientists who have no financial interests in the research outcomes and are driven solely by the desire to ensure safe implementation if, and only if, ocean alkalinity proves to be effective at removing CO₂,” said Dr. Fennel. “This must happen before it is implemented and scaled up.”

Read the Carbon to Sea Initiative’s media release about its larger investment in Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement research.

by Georgia Smith

Greensea demonstrates successful UXO survey to locate buried munitions

Greensea Systems, Inc. (Greensea), a leading provider of advanced robotics solutions, is pleased to announce the successful demonstration of a mission to locate buried munitions in the surf zone.

This UXO survey demonstrated the power and flexibility of OPENSEA to rapidly integrate and deploy a new sensor suite for the task while showcasing the capabilities of the Bayonet 250 AUGV, which was selected as a finalist in The Defense Innovation Unit's (DIU) Autonomous Amphibious Response Vehicle (A2RV) program's rapid prototyping phase. Out of 67 proposals, the Bayonet 250 crawler prototype, developed in partnership with Greensea, was chosen for its exceptional performance and potential to detect, identify, and neutralise naval mines and other explosive hazards in the challenging surf and beach landing zones.

Operating over 8 days and covering 18 square kilometers in depths of up to 10 feet, amidst wave heights of 4-6 feet in the challenging surf zone, the Bayonet 250 provided a stable and reliable platform for conducting the survey that included a towed sled equipped with White River Technology's (WRT) marine APEX technology, seamlessly integrated into Greensea’s software platform, OPENSEA.

The rapid integration of the sensor sled facilitated the detection and classification of objects, with a buried depth of up to 3 meters based on material composition.

"We are very excited about the recent success of crawler-based 3DEM sensing for advanced geophysical classification of munitions in the most challenging environments like surf zones”, says Greg Schultz, Chief Technology Officer for WRT. “The combination of autonomous amphibious crawlers, like the Bayonet units, and the WRT APEX dynamic electromagnetic classification arrays, appear ready to go where divers and towed systems have not been able to in the past".

David Pearson, Program Manager at Greensea, expressed his satisfaction with the successful mission demonstration, stating: "The success of this program and our ability to operate effectively in the challenging surf zone environment is a testament to the strength of our team and our commitment to innovation. By quickly integrating a new sensor for buried UXO and munitions, mobilising an operations team, and collecting data in demanding conditions, we have demonstrated our capability to locate and address explosive hazards in one of the most dynamic and challenging operational environments. This achievement showcases Bayonet, Greensea, and our partner's expertise to make the impossible possible. Positioning us as the trusted partner in providing solutions for maritime and underwater operations from the beach to the deep."

Throughout the mission, the Bayonet 250 successfully identified buried targets based on burial depth and signal signature, highlighting its ability to detect and identify explosive hazards in both the surf and on beach landing zones. The collaboration between Greensea, Bayonet, and White River Technology, resulted in an exceptional demonstration that further solidified their position as industry leaders in marine and underwater operations.

by Dan Levett

The Society of Maritime Industries joins Seabed 2030

A new partnership has been announced between The Nippon Foundation-GEBCO Seabed 2030 Project and the Society of Maritime Industries (SMI), a leading trade association representing the UK's maritime engineering and business sectors.

The parties will work together to advance the field of ocean science, in pursuit of the complete map of the world’s ocean floor.

Seabed 2030 is a collaborative project between The Nippon Foundation and the General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans (GEBCO), which seeks to inspire the complete mapping of the world’s ocean by 2030, and to compile all the data into the freely available GEBCO Ocean Map. The Project is formally endorsed as a Decade Action of the UN Ocean Decade. GEBCO is a joint programme of the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC), and is the only organisation with a mandate to map the entire ocean floor.

Representing over 170 member organisations involved in various sectors of the maritime industry, SMI has been instrumental in driving developments and innovation within the maritime sector - it is also a trusted advisor to the UK government and actively seeks out ways in which the industry can progress as a whole.

SMI’s approach is entirely member-focused, with members’ interests represented by six councils centering on marine science and technology; commercial marine; maritime autonomous systems; digital technology; ports infrastructure; and maritime defence and security.

“We are delighted to welcome the Society of Maritime Industries to our network of partners,” commented Seabed 2030 Project Director Jamie McMichael-Phillips. “SMI is able to contribute a wealth of industry knowledge and resources which will help us edge closer to our goal of 100 per cent of the ocean floor mapped by the end of the decade.”

Chief Executive of SMI Tom Chant MBE said: “By collaborating with Seabed 2030, we aim to help facilitate knowledge sharing, foster innovation and drive sustainable growth within the maritime industry.

“The comprehensive mapping of the ocean floor is essential to unlocking new opportunities across various sectors and, crucially, for environmental conservation.”

All data collected and shared with the Seabed 2030 project is included in the free and publicly available GEBCO global grid.

by Dan Levett