Marine
scientists
and
engineers
recently
set
free a
robot
called
Sirius
to
explore
the
ocean
floor
at
Ningaloo
in WA.
This
Autonomous
Underwater
Vehicle
(AUV),
equipped
with
high
resolution
cameras
and
sonar
and
the
ability
to
navigate
on its
own,
has
allowed
them
to
gain
unparalleled
insights
into
deep
water
environments.
The
joint
expedition
between
scientists
from
the
Australian
Institute
of
Marine
Science
(AIMS)
and
the
University
of
Sydney's
Australian
Centre
for
Field
Robotics
(ACFR)
was
designed
to
explore
the
suitability
of
AUVs
for
environmental
monitoring.
"This
has
been a
major
step
forward
in
understanding
the
deeper
water
seabed
communities
that
occur
around
Ningaloo.
In the
past,
ecologists
have
relied
on
trawl
gear
and
tools
that
are
fixed
to the
support
vessel
by
cables
to
collect
information
about
the
seascape
at
great
depths"
says
expedition
leader,
Max
Rees
from
AIMS.
"The
fact
that
the
vehicle
does
not
require
a
tether
gives
us a
great
deal
of
flexibility
in the
areas
we can
work".
BHP
Billiton
is
providing
AIMS
with
research
funds
to
enhance
marine
knowledge
of the
North
West
Cape
and
Ningaloo
Reef
and it
is
this
corporate
support
for
science
that
is
largely
responsible
for
bringing
the
AUV to
Ningaloo.
The
strong
corporate
patronage
is
enabling
projects
based
on
cutting
edge
marine
technologies
to
compliment
and
extend
the
impact
of the
Governments’
marine
science
initiatives
at
Ningaloo
under
WAMSI.
Sirius
was
designed
for
detailed
surveys
of
underwater
environments
in
depths
of up
to 700
metres.
It
uses
an
onboard
computer
system
and an
array
of
instruments
to
navigate
just
metres
above
the
seabed.
The
vehicle
scans
the
seafloor
creating
bathymetric
sonar
maps
while
collecting
thousands
of
high-resolution
digital
images
per
hour.
It is
programmed
prior
to
deployment
to
follow
a
survey
pattern
while
its
progress
can be
monitored
on the
surface
via an
underwater
acoustic
modem,
in
this
case
from
the
AIMS
Research
Vessel
Cape
Ferguson.
Dr
Stefan
Williams
from
ACFR
says,
"Last
year
engineering
trials
were
conducted
at
Ningaloo
and on
the
Great
Barrier
Reef
but
this
is the
vehicle’s
first
major
scientific
survey
expedition."
Speaking
from
the
ship
in the
last
days
of the
expedition
Max
Rees
said,
"An
unexpected
discovery
was
the
abundance
of
life
clinging
to the
very
tops
of the
steep
deepwater
canyons,
where
the
continental
shelf
drops
away
not
far
from
Ningaloo’s
shallow
reef.
Many
of the
sponges
and
deepwater
corals
that
were
photographed
may be
new to
science.
Also
of
interest
were
fields
of
mound
features
that
were
observed
on the
shallower
seabed
plateau.
We
suspected
the
mounds
were
there,
although
their
cause
remains
a
mystery,
but
have
now
been
able
to see
them
in
spectacular
detail."
In
all,
half a
million
images
were
collected
on 20
dives,
with
the
vehicle
operating
within
canyons
in
depths
of up
to
250m.
Captured
directly
onto
onboard
computers,
the
individual
stereo
images
can be
used
to
measure
minute
features
of the
seabed
with
unmatched
clarity
and
detail.
The
researchers
are
assembling
these
images
into
mosaics
that
enable
them
to
observe
larger
scale
patterns
in the
data.
"Stitched
together
the
digital
photos
will
effectively
provide
photographic
maps
of the
seabed,
giving
an
idea
of the
distribution
of
benthos
as if
the
overlying
deep
ocean
had
been
removed,"
Dr
Williams
says.
"For
AIMS,
this
expedition
has
played
a
critical
role
in
exploring
the
use of
robots
in
underwater
research.
Robotic
technology
is a
very
effective
way to
run
controlled
surveys
of
steep
walled
canyons
and
other
complex
terrain.
The
vehicle
uses a
variety
of
sensors
to
figure
out
where
it is
and to
follow
its
planned
mission.
The
data
collected
can
then
be
geo-referenced
to
allow
scientists
to
assess
how
deep
sea
communities
are
distributed
as a
function
of
depth
or
seabed
composition.
For
industry
this
technology
may be
used
to
ensure
the
environment
is
adequately
surveyed
before
projects
such
as
underwater
pipelines
are
commissioned.
Worldwide,
companies
that
lay
deep
sea
cables
and
conduct
geophysical
and
hydrographic
surveys
are
increasingly
relying
on
AUVs,"
Dr
Williams
says.
"The
next
step
is to
look
at
repeating
surveys
to
assess
changes
in
these
habitats
over
time.
Given
the
current
deployments,
we can
send
the
vehicle
down
to
have
another
look
in six
months
or a
year.
To
observe
really
fine
scale
change
will
require
that
the
robots
have
the
ability
to
recognise
parts
of our
survey
when
we
return."
Parallel
research
into
data
management
and
artificial
intelligence
are
part
of the
R & D
program.
"We
are
working
on
automated
methods
to
deal
efficiently
with
the
massive
volume
of
data
we are
collecting.
This
is
important
to
allow
us to
quickly
show
the
scientists
the
most
interesting
images
or
seafloor
structures
in the
areas
we
have
surveyed.
It
also
raises
the
possibility
of
allowing
the
vehicle
to
decide
during
its
mission
when
it is
seeing
something
of
particular
interest.
It
might
then
be
instructed
to go
in and
have a
closer
look
when
it
sees
something
out of
the
ordinary."
explains
Dr
Williams
Footage
and
photos
will
be
made
available
on
request.
