UNH Deploys Cabled Ocean Observing System Near Isles of Shoals
Albert Carpinteyro of SubCom and Jennifer Miksis-Olds, director of UNH's Center for Acoustics Research and Education prepare the cabled ocean observing system for deployment.
Because sound travels four times faster through water than air, marine researchers have long relied on acoustics to better understand the watery worlds that cover most of our planet.
Now, there’s a powerful new tool to measure the coastal Gulf of Maine environment off New Hampshire’s shores. This summer, UNH and partners deployed a cabled ocean observing system near the Isles of Shoals. The platform of sophisticated acoustic and oceanographic sensors will transmit data in real time for the first time in this region.
Located 10 miles offshore and three miles east of Appledore Island, the system’s sensors will detect human and marine mammal activity, wind and precipitation, sea ice dynamics, and oceanographic features, with implications for national security, energy development, and commercial fisheries. In addition, it will shed light on the connections between coastal measurements and the overall Gulf of Maine environment, complementing and extending existing oceanographic infrastructure.
“Measurements made with this valuable ocean asset will serve as a baseline for analyses of environmental conditions in this busy, productive area of the Gulf of Maine,” says project lead Jennifer Miksis-Olds, director of UNH’s Center for Acoustics Research and Education and interim vice president for research and innovation. “As the first of its kind on the East Coast, this will expand our understanding of the ocean in real time.”
Funded with a $6.2 million grant from the Office of Naval Research, the solar-powered system comprises three elements: an underwater platform that hosts 10 sensors (hydrophones, 200 kHz echosounder, video, temperature, salinity, pH, dissolved oxygen, current, and chlorophyll sensors, and a fish tag receiver that will share detections with the Ocean Tracking Network), solar panel and data acquisition systems on Appledore Island, and a subsea cable that connects the two.
Powerful Partnerships
The effort highlighted powerful partnerships between UNH and Newington, New Hampshire-based SubCom, which donated and laid the cable; JASCO Applied Sciences, which designed the Underwater Listening System (ULS) platform and is a longstanding industrial partner of UNH’s Center for Acoustic Research and Education; and Shoals Marine Laboratory, a field station and undergraduate marine science facility jointly operated by UNH and Cornell University on Appledore, which hosts the data acquisition system.
“SubCom is proud to support UNH and its partners in bringing real-time ocean data to researchers, students and the broader community,” says David Coughlan, CEO of SubCom. “As a New Hampshire-based company with deep expertise in subsea cable systems, we value opportunities to collaborate with our neighbors on projects that advance ocean science, strengthen regional innovation, and expand our understanding of the Gulf of Maine.”
“The ULS has been an exceptional collaboration with Dr. Miksis-Olds and the teams at UNH, SubCom, and Ocean Specialists. By delivering a continuous stream of acoustic, biological, and oceanographic data, the system will give students, researchers, and the public a powerful new window into how this corner of the Gulf of Maine changes across seasons and years,” says Bruce Martin director of applied sciences at JASCO. “The ULS is powered entirely by renewable energy, allowing us to expand our understanding of the marine environment without impacting Appledore Island — a vital breeding and nesting habitat for shorebirds and an important stopover for migratory songbirds.”
SubCom's ship laying the cable.
Filling the Data Gaps
The system will extend the listening power of the Acoustic and Environmental Observation Network in the NW Atlantic (AEON), also led by Miksis-Olds. AEON acoustically covers the offshore waters of the Gulf of Maine with five landers that span from Cape Cod to the Bay of Fundy and east into Georges Bank, approximately 62 miles offshore; this new system will fill the coastal gap, providing full regional coverage and connectivity of the two systems.
Data generated by the coastal ocean observing system will be accessible and open to all via a dedicated website.
“We look forward to providing valuable data to the research, science, and public communities — including students and researchers here at UNH— that will ultimately reveal new insights into Gulf of Maine processes,” says Miksis-Olds.
The coastal ocean observing system was funded by the Office of Naval Research, with in-kind contributions from SubCom. Lead partners in the project are JASCO Applied Sciences, Ocean Specialists, Shoals Marine Laboratory, and Sondroyo. Additional support came from Star Island Corporation and numerous local and regional contractors, including Close Focus LLC (New Hampshire), Pepperell Cove Marine Services (Newington, New Hampshire), Lionel Plante Associates (Peaks Island, Maine), and Tri-Line Cable Consultants (Pennsylvania).