"The size and shape information allow for a proper response in terms of how big of a threat the iceberg is and how it can be best dealt with. The data will be accessible via a network interface and the unmanned vessel could be "re-tasked" from any platform, offshore platform or supply vessel within the line of sight of the surface craft or from anywhere with a satellite communications connection and the necessary access keys.īachmayer continues: "The additional meteorological and oceanographic information gathered by the system can be used also for search and rescue scenario that might need to establish a drift rate and direction for a marine emergency, i.e. "The additional meteorological and oceanographic information gathered by the system can be used also for search and rescue scenario." Nevertheless, getting data to those who need it as quickly as possible is crucial for decision-making, and "will allow offshore operators to make early decisions about the potential risks a particular iceberg poses and allow for actions", Bachmayer adds. imaging and radar, will not be transmitted in real-time." However, Bachmayer adds that "because of limitations in the communication bandwidth due to power constraints, some of the higher data rate sensors, i.e. The below water measurements include surface wave conditions, water current profiles and sonar scans of the underside of the iceberg, depending on the draft of the iceberg. Monitoring above and below waterĪbove water, AOSL’s vehicles will gather and transmit meteorological data, wind speed and direction, air temperature, humidity, barometric pressure and optical and infrared images, as well as laser and radar scans of the surroundings. John’s, carry equipment for both above and below water monitoring, including high resolution cameras and acoustic wave profiling sensors. During its trial it will, according to a paper presented at the Oceans Conference 2014 in St. It is expected that this will undergo sea trials this summer, following initial tests within a tank. One such vehicle that the AOSL is developing is SeaDragon, designed to carry what is known as an integrated data acquisition system that collects data by navigating around its target of interest and generating a multi-dimensional geometric model. The plan is for the surface craft to implement the necessary algorithms to autonomously circumnavigate an iceberg, using information from its sensors such as radar, sonar and laser scanners. Russia hosts vast offshore oil and gas resources, estimated to be up to 100 billion mt of oil equivalent. What next for Russia’s offshore oil and gas? In the case of an underwater vehicle, it could be the seafloor, or for a surface craft it could be floating debris." "At the same time the vehicles use on-board sensors to avoid collisions with obstacles. From this information they derive corrections to course and heading if needed in order to achieve the desired location. He continues: "The vehicles use GPS at the surface (for underwater gliders this is only intermittent, since GPS is not available underwater) and magnetic heading in order to determine their position, course and speed. With an opportunity identified – "none of the existing vehicles had the payload capacity, endurance or robustness we needed to operate in the environment around an iceberg" – Bachmayer and his colleagues at the AOSL set about developing an autonomous observational platform "that is able to stay in the proximity of an iceberg, with the ability to occasionally adjust its relative position to the iceberg and carry a suite of sensors above and below water to monitor meteorological and oceanographic conditions around an iceberg and perform shape measurements." "One would like to combine these direct observations with mathematical ocean current models in order to predict the motion and possibly the evolution of individual icebergs," he adds, highlighting that this can be compared to hurricane forecasts, although the majority of an iceberg’s shape is unknown and submerged – making predictions based on surface observations such as satellites troublesome.īachmayer, who has worked with commercially available autonomous underwater gliders for more than 12 years, adds that while ships and remotely operated vehicles can be used to perform certain aspects of these tasks, the costs and availability make repeated iceberg observations difficult. "Currently they are monitored using satellites, aeroplanes and ships, in order to take action if they are threatening traffic or operations. "Icebergs pose a threat to marine transportation and offshore operations on the Newfoundland and Labrador shelf."
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