USVs Utilized for Seafloor Mapping Expedition on US East Coast

US unmanned systems specialist Saildrone has deployed two unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) to conduct an ocean mapping mission on the US East Coast. The USVs will return to the north-central Gulf of Maine to support National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) deep-sea coral surveys. This area was never before mapped in high resolution before last year’s mission, making this a significant undertaking.

The two USVs will be operating in the same general section of the study area, but will be surveying separate tracklines in adjacent blocks, each covering a 2.7-by-2.7-nautical-mile square each day. Equipped with AIS transceivers for safe operations at sea, the vehicles will start the survey at the southern end of the area and progress north over the two-month mission. Saildrone will deploy the USVs from Portland, Maine, for a three-to-four-day transit to the survey area.

Due to their reliance on wind for propulsion, the actual survey progress of the Saildrone vehicles will be dependent on environmental conditions. The company expects each survey block to take one to two days to complete before moving on to the next area. With high-visibility colors, navigation lights, radar reflectors, and onboard cameras for monitoring, the USVs are well-equipped for this important mapping mission.

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