Geodynamics Supports AUV training for NOAA’s Survey Response Team
Geodynamics assisted the NOAA survey response team during their AUV training missions at Cape Lookout, NC in early May. NOAA’s Office of Coast Survey Development Lab is evaluating the use of AUVs (Autonomous Underwater Vehicles) for identifying and mapping submerged features including wrecks and hazards to navigation. Completely un-tethered from a research vessel, the AUV is programmed to surface at a pre-programmed location for retrieval. On board Geodynamics’ R/V Benthos, the survey response team ran the VCT and Remus AUVs simultaneously for 3 days in the Cape Lookout Bight. Sidescan sonar data collected during the training operations will be reviewed by scientists at NOAA Center for Coastal Fisheries and Habitat Research for potential use in ongoing sea turtle or fisheries research.
