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Novel Use Of Satnav Saves Precious Water
May 17th, 2017

Via Seed Daily, a look at an innovative use of satellite navigation re: water conservation:

Water conservation is a growing concern globally, and particularly for farmers in the USA, where decades of irrigating huge fields has depleted vital resources of fresh surface water and groundwater. An ESA spin-off that can help to preserve water supplies while guaranteeing crop irrigation is now undergoing final testing.

The ambitious plan of former ESA employee Javier Marti is to tackle irrigation overuse, based on a concept developed at the agency’s technology centre in the Netherlands: using reflected satellite navigation signals for remotely sensing the Earth’s surface.

Lying under eight states in the central US, the vast Ogallala aquifer supplies almost a third of the ground water for crop irrigation in the country – but a large portion of the aquifer, particularly in the states of New Mexico, Texas and Oklahoma, could dry up within a generation or two if no action is taken.

Two thirds of the aquifer’s water lies under Nebraska, making the state a focus for testing the approach that Javier’s company Divirod has developed.

Over the coming months, several farms will regulate and optimise their irrigation using the new technique to reduce water consumption.

“Our system compares reflected and direct satnav signals to reveal the moisture content of soil and crops,” explained Javier, Divirod’s CEO.

“We anticipate our system could save farmers around 30% in operating costs in terms of both water and energy. Crop yields depend on many factors, but we estimate we could also improve yields by 10-12%.”

Using satnav signals for remote sensing

Javier worked with ESA engineer Manuel Martin-Neira on the Agency’s SMOS soil moisture and ocean salinity satellite. Here, he got the idea of using reflected satnav signals from a project proposed by Manuel for remote sensing. Manuel proposed using the microwave signals to measure terrestrial features such as the topography of oceans.

“Satellites carrying altimeters that use radar can only measure along the line of flight, whereas I realised that using reflected satnav signals would let us take measurements from several different points,” explained Manuel.

Spin-off from space

“Javier and Manuel’s work resulted in three ESA patents for using reflected satnav signals, a breakthrough now available for developing new terrestrial applications,” said ESA Technology Transfer Programme officer Mercedes Sanchez Alvarez.

“It’s great to see that Javier has taken the same signal approach and used it in another manner to develop a practical system for ground measurements of surface soil moisture content, water levels in reservoirs, snowpack and wetlands, among other applications.”

Manuel added, “Although the principles of how SMOS measures soil moisture are different from the Divirod approach, both techniques provide essentially the same thing.

“But what is nice here is that satellite navigation itself is the focus of much development, so basing a soil moisture measurement system on it should enable cost-effective results.”

Javier explained that the key is how the satnav signals are processed. “Using satnav for remote sensing is not unique, but we have developed software that lets us measure variations across a huge field down to a resolution of around 5×5 m or less, using only one sensor on a pole in the centre of the field.

“For some applications we could reduce this resolution to below a square metre in the future.”

This detailed coverage can be integrated into irrigation systems so that water is delivered precisely to different areas across each field as required.

Sensors can also be built into the industrial centre pivot irrigation systems that are widely used across the USA and combined with machine learning to create a self-contained, closed-loop scheme.

Better cultivation in Nebraska

“I’m really excited about the prospect of using the Divirod technology to refine how we use water on our farm,” said Roric Paulman, owner of Paulman Farms in Nebraska, one of the initial trial sites.

“We’re sited in a water restriction management area now. Nebraska legislation recognises that the surface water and groundwater needs in the future are important to the sustainability of the aquifer.”

The alternative methods of assessing soil moisture are physical probes and satellite images. However, a probe measures only the value at one point, and extrapolating from that can be complicated by the different soil types, slopes and varying ground elevation – even across a single field.

“The problems with satellite imagery are not only resolution and cost, but also the time it takes to gather the data and translate it into a setting for the irrigation tool. This can take days, but on a farm we’re working in real time,” added Roric.

Towards efficient water use

Divirod is carrying out sensor tests at the University of Nebraska’s Lincoln Experiment Station to confirm the sensor measurements. It will also be one of the technologies investigated by the Ogallala Water Coordinated Agriculture Project, which may involve thousands of sensors.

Although agriculture is a focus for Divirod, the company is already exploring other applications. From May, sensors will be tested at two sites in Boulder, Colorado, for their potential for moderating water usage in municipal landscapes. There has also been interest from the Middle East. A provisional patent has been filed and more could follow.

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In Sri Lanka’s Deep Waters Marine Conservation Goes Hi-Tech
March 27th, 2017

Via Eurasia Review, a look at how drones and mobile applications are changing marine conservation efforts in Sri Lanka:

As the midday sun rises higher over Gulf of Mannar, a drone hovers over the blue mass of sea water. Below, a motley crowd of fishermen gathers, straining their eyes at a drone.

A few metres from the crowd, conservationist Prasanna Weerakkody operating the drone raises it to 500 metres, before moving it slowly in different directions, allowing the device to film a large swathe of water.

One day, he believes, the roving camera of this drone will send images of one of the most elusive sea mammals in this ocean: the dugong.

“Dugong usually swims at a depth of about 5-10 metres. Being mammals, they also come above water every few minutes to inhale fresh air. The drone has the capacity of rising one km high, but we usually operate it at 400-500 metres. This is enough to capture images of dugong,” says Weerakkody, whose organisation – Ocean Resources Conservation Association (ORCA) – is a partner of the four-year Global Environment Facility (GEF) funded, multi-agency environmental initiative: the Dugong and Sea Grass Conservation Project.

Saving the Ocean’s Most Vulnerable

The dugong – a manatee-like creature known locally as “sea pig” – is listed as vulnerable to extinction by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which is also a partner in the conservation project.

The world’s only vegetarian sea mammal, the dugong lives at a depth of 5-15 meters, feeding on sea grass. Its natural habitat is vast – stretching from Eritrea in East Africa to Vanuatu in the Pacific. However, there is no documented information on their numbers in Sri Lankan waters. Very little is also known about their behaviour and movement, such as when and how they move, which part of the sea or grass bed they frequent and why, and which seasons are the most favourable. In short, most questions that one can raise about a dugong here are unanswered.

The main reason, says Arjan Rajasurya, Project Manager at IUCN Sri Lanka, is that the dugong is a very “secretive” animal which rarely shows up. “There may be a dugong right under a boat, but you will not know of its existence because it does not jump through the water like a dolphin or squirt water like a whale,” he explains.

The secretiveness is proven by the fact that none of the officials involved in the multi-agency conservation project has ever seen a live dugong.

And yet as many as 13 dugongs are known to have been killed in the past three years, many of them reported by the local media. Sri Lanka’s National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency (NARA) – a marine research organisation – has also carried out autopsies on some dead dugong.

Locals – especially fishermen whose gill nets catch and kill dugongs – are also tight-lipped and seldom come forward to share information on the sea mammal, probably fearing punitive actions by the government or backlash from other fishermen.

Besides gathering missing information on the mammal and its habitat and chalk out a strategy to protect both, the 4.88 million dollar Dugong Conservation project, which took off in mid-2015, also aims to curb illegal fishing and bridge the communication and awareness gap with the locals. To help achieve this, use of a drone was decided as a crucial component, say the project partners.

Killer War Tool as Marine life Protector

Technically, a drone is an unmanned aircraft with powerful cameras that capture images below. It can be either remotely controlled or fly on its own using software such as onboard sensors and GPS. Extensively used by security forces in war zones, the drone has lately gained a reputation as a dangerous killer machine that drops bombs on people – ‘terrorists’ and civilians alike.

The most extensive – and controversial – use of drones has been in Pakistan and in the Middle East where the war against terror has been raging for years.

However, here in the deep waters of Sri Lanka, the technology is a last-mile effort to save critically endangered marine animals by monitoring their movement, studying their habitat and preventing their capture and killing by illegal fishers.

According to Weerakkody, who leads a dedicated team of marine life experts, this is probably the first time ever that drone technology is being used for marine conservation. “This is a Phantom basic pro robotic machine fitted with a camera that can shoot over 2 K video, which is almost three times as clear as the picture on your HD TV.”.

Apart from the drone, the ORCA team is using a side-scan sonar device that captures echoes from an object on the sea floor and creates its images after measuring the strength of how “loud” the return echo is.

However, this device can only work if it is placed on a moving object – such as a boat or an underwater vehicle – which produces a sound. So, if a dugong is right next to the sonar, but the solar carrier is still, the device will not be able to capture its image. Also, given that the dugong is a shy and secretive animal, it will most likely swim away when it senses a moving vehicle nearby.

An Everyman’s Mobile App

While the drone and the side-scan sonar are handled by highly skilled experts like Weerakkody, the project is also designing technologies that are user-friendly and can be used by community members with little or no training.

Channa Suraweera, Project Manager at Sri Lanka’s Department of Wildlife Conservation, demonstrated one such design to IDN: an application that can be used by locals to report sighting of a dugong or any other large sea animal.

Based on Smart Survey software, the app gives multiple options for a user to report what has been seen: a dugong, a dolphin, a whale or any other sea animal. In a few seconds, with a few clicks, someone can send a text and a photograph which will be stored at a government-run server. The department will analyse this information and add this is to a database on sea mammals which is currently being built.

“As of now, we have very little data on dugong and we cannot build an entire database on our own. So we built this app to involve the general public in collecting information and sharing it with us,” said Suraweera.”It’s very easy to use and any mobile phone user with an internet connection can provide us with data. Once we have enough data, we can create a concrete plan to protect the dugong. We can also use the data to popularise tourism in the country, especially in the southern part of the ocean where whales are seen.”

Promoting Digital Communication

Suraweera explained that he mobile app is actually a part of a larger plan to build a fully computerised marine conservation coordination centre given the current communication gap among various government agencies, locals and civil society organisations on the issue of sea mammal conservation.

Once established, the centre will help loop in each of these agencies – including the Sri Lankan Navy and Coast Guard – and providing training in the latest digital technologies developed by the department. “It will be a centre that will strengthen communication and also help create a robust digitised database on marine conservation,” Suraweera predicted.

High End Technology for a Biodiverse Future

Mekala Christopher is a young boatman in Kalpitiya who often ferries officials and tourists to the high sea to see corals and dolphins. On several occasions, Christopher has seen a drone in the sky, but he says he has “no idea what it is actually for” and that he is also unaware of the massive conservation initiative to protect sea mammals such as the dugong.

According to Suraweera, if this conservation project is to succeed, members of the local community like Christopher must have a way to extend their support to it. “This project can only create guidelines and a framework for action, but the real action can be taken only by locals. They need to take part in the information sharing system,” he says, pointing at the fishermen’s village on the shore.

Veerakkody, on the other hand, hopes that the future will see deployment of more drones with more sophisticated features. The accomplishments of the drone in the project’s first year have been satisfactory: images have revealed that the sea grass bed is largely fine, except for some sporadic damage caused by fishing trawlers. But a higher end drone with more advanced technology such as a 4k camera could help better monitor their movement and map the habitat. “Those devices could decide the course of tomorrow’s conservation,” he says confidently.

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A Splash of River Water Now Reveals the DNA of All Its Creatures
March 10th, 2017

Via Yale’s e360, an interesting look at how quick and inexpensive DNA sampling of a river, stream, or lake can now divulge what fish or other animals live there, and how this rapidly growing environmental DNA, or eDNA, technology is proving to be a game-changing conservation tool:

The U.S. Forest Service has launched a project to collect DNA from all rivers and streams across the western U.S.

Experts say use of the technology is in its early stages and that as it evolves it will become even more powerful, providing an even deeper look into the genetics of aquatic ecosystems, including ocean environments.

The next step in the evolution of the technology would be to estimate the abundance of a species in a river or other water body based on the quantity of DNA found in samples. “That is going to continue to be a research frontier,” said Lodge.

Scientists say that eDNA can be used not only to detect the presence of invasive species in a river, lake, or ocean, but also to help reintroduce native species, to study genetic diversity among fish stocks, and to better manage commercial and endangered species.

Until now, the primary way to conduct distribution studies was to physically see, count, and describe species, a time-consuming process that is expensive and often hit-or-miss. That leaves huge gaps in the knowledge of where species are, which often confounds species management.

One of the best examples of the transformative nature of eDNA is in assessing the distribution of bull trout across its entire range. Bull trout are a threatened species in the U.S. Northwest, and their habitat is declining because of deteriorating water quality and warming water temperatures. Cold water is essential to their spawning.

By knowing where the fish live, managers can direct funding for protecting and restoring riparian habitat. Until recently, though, the only way to find and count bull trout was to do an electro-shocking census. That means a biologist would take equipment to the river to shock fish in the water and count them as they float, stunned, to the surface. That technique is time-consuming, not always permitted, and can survey only a fairly small area with each census.

With eDNA, a single sample can tell which species have been in a river a kilometer upstream from the sample site within the last 24 to 40 hours — that’s how long the DNA lasts in the water. Tests with caged fish have shown that just three fish in a river can give a 100 percent detection rate, and one fish 85 percent.

The range-wide bull trout study, conducted by the Forest Service, first looked at the temperature of streams that fit bull trout requirements. Then eDNA samples were taken to detect the trout’s presence in those reaches. “We’ve been able to detect bull trout in streams in a matter of days that have taken some of our colleagues years to confirm,” says Schwartz. And there were surprises. “In a couple of locations where bull trout were not supposed to be, we have multiple detections throughout the drainage,” Schwartz says.

eDNA technology is being used in other parts of the world as well. 

In the Dinaric Alps, a mountain range that runs through Croatia and Slovenia, there’s a curious creature called the olm — a blind, flesh-colored salamander also known as a baby dragon — that lives its entire life underground. “They are a symbol of our country, but are still as mysterious as they were a hundred years ago,” Peter Trontelj of the Department of Biology at the Ljubljana Faculty of Biotechnology told an English-language news site. The only way to know where they lived was to dive into a cave and find them or to see them washed out of a cave after a heavy rain. But after testing for eDNA, biologists confirmed their presence in 10 caves where they were known to exist, and discovered new populations in five others.

In Japan last year, scientists found that eDNA sampling gave them a rough “snapshot” of the distribution and biomass of fish species in a bay in the Sea of Japan.

eDNA assessment has also become a new, powerful weapon in the fight against invasive species. 

The first published study of the use of eDNA for conservation purposes was in 2008 in France. The American bullfrog has become an invasive species in France and around the world; not only does it displace native species, but the bullfrog also carries the virulent amphibian killer fungus, chytrid. Early detection of bullfrogs can make a big difference in the ease of eradicating them, but they are hard to find. Calling the frogs only locates a small portion of the population – and even then the census needs to be done at night and in certain weather conditions. With eDNA, French researchers were able to easily confirm the bullfrog’s presence in some ponds and target those for removal. 

The identification of fugitive DNA is also playing a role in the detection and eradication of invasive fish, a growing problem. Asian carp, a voracious plankton eater, would pose a huge threat to the ecology of the Great Lakes if they become established there, since they eat so much plankton they starve young fish of other species. While a few have been detected, biologists are monitoring rivers and canals that feed the lakes for early signs of more invaders.

In the western U.S., one target of eDNA searches has been brook trout, an interloper from the East that outcompetes native species. In one eradication scenario, managers would capture native fish and then use poison to kill the brook trout, so that native species could be re-introduced. If biologists find brook trout DNA after poisoning a river, they could go back in and electrofish to see where the stragglers may be hiding. 

“Sometimes they have detected one or two or three fish finding refuge in a side channel,” said Schwartz. “In one case they found a dead brook trout under a rock that didn’t flush out of the system.”

That’s one of the drawbacks of the technology — there’s no way to tell if the DNA of an invasive species is dead or alive. A great deal of time and effort could be spent trying to find an exotic carp, for example, that was already dead. 

‘Any group of students can collect samples in lakes, rivers, and ponds,’ says one researcher.

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As Lake Chad Shrinks Rapidly, Space Technology And Drones Are Needed To fight Africa’s Droughts
February 26th, 2017

Via Quartz, a look at how emerging technological opportunities for improving environmental monitoring and the need to act in time could help manage crisis like Lake Chad:

Nigerian and Chadian officials are seeking $50 billion for a major water diversion project to replenish Lake Chad. This is nearly twice the annual GDP of Uganda. But it’s understandable, the lake has shrunk by nearly 90% between 1963 and today.

The plan involves diverting water from the Oubangi River in Central Africa to replenish the lake. It is estimated that the feasibility study alone would cost nearly $15 million. The proposed project would also provide irrigation, energy, and transportation infrastructure aimed at stimulating economic development.

With the election of Chadian foreign minister Moussa Faki Mahamat as chairperson of the African Union Commission, the project and the larger security concerns will remain a priority for the organization as well as for diplomatic interactions with other regions of the world.

Lake Chad offers a grim cautionary tale of how lessons from chronic drought might inform our anticipation of the potential impact of climate change in many parts of Africa. It shows the close interconnections between ecological change, security, and development. But it also points to emerging technological opportunities for improving environmental monitoring and the need to act in time.

The lake straddles the borders of Cameroon, Chad, and Nigeria. This is the same region that is ravaged by the excesses of Boko Haram. It provides water for nearly 30 million people in the semi-arid Sahel region. Its overall basin is the largest closed drainage basin in the world covering 2.5 million square km, or about 8% of the African continent.

The prolonged Sahel drought from the late 1960s to the early 1980s reduced water flow into the lake. The drought, combined with population growth, pushed people in the catchment areas to expand irrigation. This further undercut the flow of water into the lake.

In 1972, the lake split into two, and was separated by a 40 km barrier. The southern lake is shallower and therefore more susceptible to evaporation. To restore the lake level, enough water would need to flow into the southern lake to overflow the barrier and replenish the northern lake. But this has been compromised by drought and irrigation. Simulation studies have shown that the failure of Lake Chad to merge back into a single water body following wetter periods in the 1990s resulted from irrigation. Without irrigation the lake would have probably merged in 1999, and again in 2004.

Lake Victoria’s challenge

The case of Lake Chad is too dramatic to contemplate. But other major water bodies such as Lake Victoria are vulnerable to similar, if not equivalent, impacts. Nearly 80% of the replenishment of Lake Victoria comes from rainfall, which feeds thousands of streams. The lake itself is relatively shallow, averaging 40 meters deep. A prolonged drought could affect large parts of the shoreline, destroying fish breeding areas and agriculture. This would put the lives of millions of people at risk.

 Consequences of a receding shoreline due to prolonged drought is unknown. But it would be foolhardy to wait and see. Some people would turn to irrigation, especially on the Kenyan side of the lake, which has the largest number of rivers flowing into it. This would reduce the inflow of water into the lake. Considerable water and land use conflicts would ensue, making them national security challenges. The ramifications would extend to East Africa’s relations with the Nile basin countries, especially Egypt.

Little is known of the consequences of even modest receding of the shoreline due to prolonged drought. But it would be foolhardy to wait and see. The first step in addressing the problem is to conduct real time monitoring of ecological trends in the region. One of the most effective tools available today is satellite technology.

African countries are only starting to explore the use of space technology. Climate change and regional ecological disruptions are already rendering historical maps and geographical data useless. Traditional knowledge is no longer an effective guide for environmental management in light of climate change. Policymakers need a fresh start using modern technologies.

Part of the slow adoption of satellite technology is the perception that space technology is too expensive. The popular and false image of the technology is derived from the last century, when the space programs were too expensive for emerging countries.

This perception has persisted despite dramatically falling costs of developing such programs. African countries can now establish viable space programs with about $300 million. The costs could be shared by neighboring countries. The East African Community, for example, could have one regional space program instead five separate ones.

More countries around the world are now focusing on small satellites, which are easier to build and launch in modular constellations. This is also making it possible for students in South Africa to participate in the design of small satellites and the accompanying scientific experiments.

The other major concern is that the few space initiatives that exist in Africa focus more on turnkey projects. Instead, they should stress building the requisite human capacity needed to rise up the space ladder. The best place to build such capacity is in universities, not in secretive departments in government ministries.

The lifespan of a satellite is about 10 years. Countries that do not invest in continuous training quickly see their ground facilities rendered obsolete by technological change. A space program only functions effectively when it is supported by a strong human resource foundation on the ground.

The future of environmental monitoring is being transformed by the increased use emerging technologies such as civilian drones. Climate change offers Africa yet another reason to leverage the drones to complement satellite technology. Increasing the installation of weather stations across Africa would provide additional support for environmental monitoring. According to Gro Intelligence, the land mass of sub-Saharan Africa is 35 times that of Texas. Yet the two have nearly the same number of weather stations.

The long-term contribution of such efforts lies in building strong institutions of higher learning attached to major infrastructure projects. Such universities can then work with networks of technical institutes and high schools to broaden the base for competence in environmental management.

Investments in human resource development, especially in the engineering fields, will help African countries reduce the maintenance costs of infrastructure projects. Given the magnitude of the financial outlays needed for climate change abatement projects, the continent needs low-cost ways of providing evidence-based advice for the design, implementation and maintenance of infrastructure investments. Ways to do this include expanding the engineering divisions of African scientific academies as well as creating dedicated academies of engineering.

The specter of climate change will continue to haunt Africa. But it also offers new opportunities for tapping into emerging technologies for environmental monitoring to address improve development planning and identify emerging security challenges. Such anticipatory work might give the continent the knowledge needed to respond in time to ecological disasters.

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The Digital Ocean: Our Next Information Frontier
February 17th, 2017

Via Scientific American, interesting commentary on the need for an information superhighway of the seas:

When the term Information Highway was coined, little did the majority of the world realize the impact this concept and the resulting Internet Superhighway would have on humanity. In 1994, MIT described the concept this way: “The information superhighway brings together millions of individuals who could exchange information with one another.”  Spring forward to today. You can simply “Google” anything and receive an instantaneous response to gain immediate knowledge.  This is our expectation—immediate access to data anywhere in the world, day or night.

In reality, instant access to data is only true for less than one quarter of our planet. For the remaining three quarters, the ocean, there is a huge information infrastructure gap, with limited to no real time access to data.

Why is this? On land, we have sensors everywhere—weather sensors to provide neighborhood weather reports, traffic sensors to report on road conditions, and the list goes on. There are sensors throughout your home for better home management and security—controlled right from your smartphone. In manufacturing plants, sensors are prevalent to optimize the supply chain and increase productivity. Many more examples exist in healthcare, entertainment, military, oil & gas, and in thousands of other industries. The Digital Revolution has certainly arrived, yet not to our oceans.

Why does this matter? Who needs instant access to information in the middle of the ocean? The answer is we all do. The world’s economies are tightly linked to the oceans. Over 90 percent of global trade is carried by ships with goods worth over $4 trillion. Fishery net export revenues are over $42B, and offshore energy exploration exceeds $394B. To help solve the global issues of dwindling fisheries/seafood supplies, energy shortages, and climate change we must depend on advancements in technologies, and the ability to understand the ocean, which will require an exponential growth and deployment of sensors and a global communications infrastructure to help monitor and manage the ocean.  These economic forces, coupled to the sustainable management of our ocean environment, are key drivers of the Blue Economy. The common denominator for this growth is the need for pervasive real time data to understand what’s going on in our ocean and in turn, our planet

Despite a growing awareness of our economic dependence on our Oceans, the majority of the world does not realize its importance or our dependence for life’s basic needs (oxygen, food, weather). Below are statistics that underscore this importance and co-dependence:

• The U.S. GDP is heavily influenced by U.S. Maritime transportation with over 95 percent of U.S. foreign trade, nearly 3 million jobs (1 in 50), dependent on maritime commerce (Source: CIT Maritime Fast Facts in Five, 2016).
• Four fifths of the world’s merchandise trade is seaborne.
• 99 percent of all international data (calls, text messages, financial transactions) travel through undersea cables.
• In Europe alone, the gross estimated incremental value of the Blue Economy is $500 Billion per year.
• Fish provide more than 3.1 billion people with almost 20 percent of their intake of animal protein.

A maritime digital revolution

Today, our expectation is for instant communication—immediate response to any question. Just ask Google Home or Amazon Echo. We enjoy access to real time information across land, air and space; however, this is not true for our ocean.

This is the glaring gap. Seventy one percent of our planet is ocean. Of this 2/3 of our world, we only know five percent about what exists. Why? Unlike on land, air and space, there are relatively few sensors or devices to collect data below the surface and even fewer ways to communicate. The issue is the World lacks a data collection and communications infrastructure to provide real time communications throughout our ocean.

Without the ability to have pervasive information and information exchange, I submit we will not be able to tackle some of the most challenging issues before us. In 2015, more than 190 world leaders committed to 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to help us all end extreme poverty, fight inequality & injustice, and fix climate change. Of these, number 14 is to conserve and sustainably use the ocean. This is a fundamental requirement, and, if not addressed, will have severe consequences. Just think of the ramifications to the 2.6 billion people who today rely on seafood as their main source of protein?

A vision for a Digital Ocean is emerging.  It can be defined as a diverse, networked array of platforms and sensors that enable connectivity across the ocean, to the air above and through the vast ocean depths, providing instant access to ocean information. This vision will take time and collaboration across industry, government, NGOs and Academia. It requires unmanned and manned systems working together to collect exchange and communicate data.

We need to start today to overcome the challenge of networking the ocean. The benefits of such a network are invaluable. Imagine if there were grids of sensors spanning our ocean, connected and networked, that could provide instant information on impending tsunamis, or on water quality to detect oil leaks and possibly prevent a major catastrophe.  Think about the intelligence we would gain by using these sensors to conduct long term monitoring of the world’s fish population and how this could help feed those 2.6 billion people. The insights we’d gain from this data would transform business, advance scientific discovery and help safeguard our ocean.

Overcoming business and technology barriers.

Before the Digital Ocean becomes a reality there are obstacles we have to overcome:

• Lack of a pervasive ocean data collection and communications infrastructure. Fundamentally, we need to create the information highway for the ocean. A connected network of systems, manned and unmanned, that can collect data anywhere in the ocean, anytime, and do so sustainably. Today this is not possible. Enabling on-demand, real time ocean information is the goal for the Digital Ocean.
• Sparse number of sensors throughout the ocean. Ironically, there are more sensors in Space than our ocean. Why? The ocean is an extremely dangerous and costly place to operate, especially in the unpredictable deep ocean. The costs, both in dollars and risks to human life, severely limit ocean observation and monitoring. With sensors to collect real time data on climate change, weather, seismic activity, ocean currents, fish migration or other biological or environmental conditions, we can learn what’s really happening beneath the surface. We’ll have the data to measure and then better manage our ocean. This ability to easily and economically deploy data collection sensors throughout our ocean is fundamental to the future of the ocean economy and ocean preservation.
• Renewable energy to fuel long duration systems. For ocean systems, energy is the first constraint that limits how independent, how autonomous, a robot can be. With vast coverage areas and no mid ocean gas stations or electric hook-ups, the need for systems that are not dependent on refueling and those operating on renewable energy sources is critical to long duration operations.
• Extreme reliability for ocean operations. As noted, the ocean is unpredictable and harsh. In addition to extreme wave, wind, current, temperature changes and mid ocean hurricanes, salt-water corrosion is another unique challenge that must be overcome.  Every component and every aspect of the integrated system requires extreme reliability design and testing. It requires the same or greater testing that is done for space flights, as for both, repair calls are slow and costly.
• Reducing the cost and risk of ocean operations. The current acquisition, maintenance and operational costs for ocean operations are prohibitive for most businesses. With the advent of unmanned systems, the risks and high costs associated with manned ocean operations (i.e. ships) are greatly reduced. We need to let the unmanned systems tackle the dull, dangerous and dirty jobs to safeguard human life and improve overall operational efficiency.

The ocean is data rich, yet without an easy, reliable, and cost effective communications infrastructure it remains untapped. The good news is we’re not starting from scratch. Commercially available technologies, both manned and unmanned, are available and working today, but more development is needed.  Creating the Digital Ocean will require an entire ecosystem of partners working together toward a common objective – connectivity anywhere on or in the planet’s oceans. 

Starting now, starting together

Whether it’s international trade, undersea communications, weather, food sources or jobs, our economic future depends on sustaining a healthy global ocean. To do so, we need to reliably collect and communicate information from all parts of the ocean. This requires a renewed dedication to network and communications innovation that fueled the World Wide Web. We can start by collaborating on the Digital Ocean.

The Digital Ocean is a long-term endeavor that is not in place today, yet has seeds around the world. It requires more than technology and building out the fundamental infrastructure. It will require thoughtful and collaborative work on international maritime law and regulations, interoperability and data standards, and security. The good news is that we have the experts today.  Our next step is to adopt a shared vision with clear goals and then get started.

The time to get started is now. Our oceans are ailing and need our attention. Without a healthy ocean we cannot realize a healthy ocean economy. This is why I ask you to start thinking now about the role your organization can play in the Digital Ocean. What can we collectively do to overcome the challenges?  Looking ahead the opportunities are vast and the stakes are high. Join me to create the Digital Ocean—the next global communications frontier that will serve the Ocean of 2030 and our future generations.

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Google Earth Update Shows How Climate Change Has Morphed Our Planet
November 30th, 2016

Via Popular Science, a report on how a recent Google Earth update shows how climate change has morphed our planet:

In 2013, Google released Google Earth Timelapse, an interactive viewer that lets users see satellite images of Earth from 1984 to the present, giving a rapid timelapse look at how human development and climate change have shaped our planet. Also in 2013, Popular Science reported that the scientific consensus surrounding human-driven climate change was stronger than ever. With Google’s new update to Timelapse, users can see the effects of global climate change even more sharply, including melting glaciers, rising sea levels, and receding forests.

With more satellite data driving this update, viewers can watch the effects of climate change, such as Exit Glacier in Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula rapidly receding over the past three decades. According to a news release from Google, this update uses “four additional years of imagery, petabytes of new data, and a sharper view of the Earth from 1984 to 2016.” This means it’s easier for users to not only see the effects of climate change, but also the effects of rapid human population growth.

 The east African nation of Ethiopia has experienced massive deforestation throughout the past few decades, much of it for agriculture to feed a rapidly growing population. Though government programs to encourage sustainable farming practices have helped slow the pace of deforestation, you can see on this timelapse map how much of the country’s green has turned brown.

Other environmental changes, such as sea level rise, are less reversible, but still profound.

 One of the places in the United States most affected by sea level rise is Dorchester County, Maryland. As you can see in this timelapse over the past 30 years, the salt marshes in this coastal county have become more and more submerged, which puts communities and the seafood industry at risk.

Other coastal communities face similar challenges in the face of a changing world.

 This map of the Mississippi River Delta, at Louisiana’s coast, shows how small islands form and disappear over the years. While this process has been ongoing for thousands of years, human communities make these natural shifts more dangerous. The low-lying communities of the Delta region were hit hard by Hurricane Katrina, and another major storm could be even riskier in coming years.

Coastal areas aren’t the only places being affected by climate change, though.

 Lake McConaughy in Keith County, Nebraska, lies within the northern extent of the Ogallala Aquifer. This shallow water table, which supplies nearly a third of the United States’ irrigation water, has been put under increasing strainsince the middle of the twentieth century, as midwestern farmers have contended with drought to meet ever-increasing demands for their produce.

These timelapses may paint a less-than-rosy picture, but remember: You can also just play around with Timelapse to see how your hometown has changed throughout your lifetime.

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New technical innovations such as location-tracking devices, GPS and satellite communications, remote sensors, laser-imaging technologies, light detection and ranging” (LIDAR) sensing, high-resolution satellite imagery, digital mapping, advanced statistical analytical software and even biotechnology and synthetic biology are revolutionizing conservation in two key ways: first, by revealing the state of our world in unprecedented detail; and, second, by making available more data to more people in more places. The mission of this blog is to track these technical innovations that may give conservation the chance – for the first time – to keep up with, and even get ahead of, the planet’s most intractable environmental challenges. It will also examine the unintended consequences and moral hazards that the use of these new tools may cause.Read More

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