Robots to sniff out oil spills and algal blooms in the ice-covered Arctic
Wednesday, March 4, 2020 - 09:30
in Earth & Climate
Bundled in snow gear and wielding a chainsaw, a team of engineers cut a rectangular block from the solid ice underfoot, carving an entryway for their underwater robot. They plopped the torpedo-shaped vehicle, named Polaris, into the dark hole notched out of the surface of Bog Lake, Maine, and it slid smoothly into the water. The field trial—a collaboration between MBARI and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI)—marked the first time an MBARI long-range autonomous underwater vehicle (LRAUV) had ever traveled beneath an ice sheet. But it won't be the last—Polaris or similar robots may eventually be used to sniff out oil spills and algal blooms in the ice-covered Arctic.