Investigating marine liferarosa/class/5thbw.pdf · In these cases, hi-tech instruments and unmanned vehicles are used. Tecnology - Transportation Research Vessels (R/Vs) Technology

Investigating marine lifeInvestigating marine life

Tecnology Tecnology -- TransportationTransportation

Scientists must be able to reach all the different marine

habitats.

Due to the great depths of the oceans, scientists themselves

often cannot go to the places they are interested in studying.

In these cases, hi-tech instruments and unmanned vehicles are

used.

Tecnology Tecnology -- TransportationTransportationResearch Vessels (R/Vs)

Technology Technology -- TransportationTransportationResearch Vessels (R/Vs)

Research vessels can be anything from small boats (for near-shore

work)

to very large ships capable of oceanic research lasting several

months at sea.

They provide a mobile platform for marine research and can carry a

wide variety of sampling and surveying equipment. Most research

vessels have laboratory space on board so that researchers can

begin to analyze the material they collect during a cruise.


Research vessels provide a home and launching base for

manned submersibles such as the NAUTILE, and other deep-diving

vessels.


The decks of research vessels can become congested with the large

amount of equipment used to study the oceans.

Technology Technology –– TransportationTransportationManned SubmersiblesManned Submersibles

Submersibles allow marine scientists to go down

to great depths for viewing and sampling

organisms in their natural settings.

These vessels are compact and are dependent

on surface support vessels, such as the ALVIN,

the JOHNSON SEALINK, or Russia's MIR.

Technology Technology –– TransportationTransportationManned SubmersiblesManned Submersibles

They can also be military submarines converted

for oceanographic research. Groundbreaking

research, such as the discovery of hydrothermal vents, has been done in submersibles.

They are not capable of reaching the deepest ocean regions, are costly to

operate, and lack the versatility and endurance of Remotely Operated

Vehicles.

Technology Technology –– TransportationTransportationRemotelyRemotely--Operated Vehicles (Operated Vehicles (ROVsROVs))

ROVs are unmanned vessels that give scientists

the opportunity to study and collect organismsfrom greater depths than manned submersibles,

without the risk to human life, and at less expense

and effort.

ROVs are becoming the primary tool for studying

the biodiversity of the deepest oceanic

ecosystems.

They are linked to a surface support R/V that

controls their underwater activity and transports

them to and from the research site.

Technology Technology –– TransportationTransportationRemotelyRemotely--Operated Vehicles (Operated Vehicles (ROVsROVs))

VIDEO

Technology Technology –– TransportationTransportationAutonomous Underwater Vehicles (Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVsAUVs))

Like ROVS, AUVs are useful

unmanned exploration vessels capable

of going deeper, for longer, and at less

cost and effort than manned

submersibles.

They have the added benefit of being able to

act and move on their own and collect

samples without constant direct input from a

surface-based R/V control station.

Technology Technology –– TransportationTransportationAutonomous Underwater Vehicles (Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVsAUVs))

VIDEO

Technology Technology –– TransportationTransportationDeepDeep--Towed Vehicles (Towed Vehicles (DTVsDTVs))

DTVs are towed behind a research

vessel as it traverses a plotted path

across the ocean.

They are more simple than ROVs and

AUV, but are useful as platforms for a

variety of different oceanographic

instruments that measure biological,

chemical, and physical aspects of the

ocean.


There are many different types of

towed vehicles, such as the Moving

Vessel Profiler (MVP) that can house a

video plankton counter or similar

device.

At the same time, several external

sensors can be carried that record various

physical qualities such as temperature

and current speed.


There are many different types of

towed vehicles, such as the Moving

Vessel Profiler (MVP) that can house a

video plankton counter or similar

device.

At the same time, several external

sensors can be carried that record various

physical qualities such as temperature

and current speed.


The DTV BRIDGET, moves up and down near the ocean floor,

like a yo-yo, to study plumes associated with hydrothermal

vents.

It carries instruments designed specifically to study

hydrothermal vents.

TechnologyTechnology

TransportationTransportation

ObservationObservation

-- AcousticAcoustic

Technology Technology –– AcousticAcousticSideSide--Scan SONARScan SONAR

Side-Scan SONAR is a type of

acoustic technology used for

mapping the ocean floor and

for tracking schools of fish.

This is a well-established

technique for studying marine

life.


Pulses of sound are projected

by a ship or a towed device.

As the sound waves bounce

off objects, whether living

things or physical features of

the ocean floor, they reflect

back to the ship.

This generates an image of

the shapes from the reflected

sound.

Scientists use Side-Scan

SONAR to "see" in the ocean.


An actual SONAR-generated

picture demonstrating how

effective Side-Scan SONAR

can be at distinguishing

differences in the composition

of the ocean floor.


VIDEO

Technology Technology –– AcousticAcousticStandard & MultiStandard & Multi--Frequency Echo SoundersFrequency Echo Sounders

Standard and Multi-Frequency

Echo Sounders, also called

Multi-Beam SONAR, allow

scientists to estimate the size

of plankton and fish

populations.


Echo sounders may also be

used for species identification.

This acoustic technologyincreases the success of

imaging animals underwater

as fish species respond

differently to different sound

frequencies, and produce

different acoustic signals.


VIDEO


Actual output data of animal

movements in the water

column; collected using an

echo sounder.


The greatly increased

coverage effectiveness of

multi beam versus single

beam echo sounding.

Technology Technology –– AcousticAcousticBottomBottom--Penetrating SoundersPenetrating Sounders

Used for mapping both the

surface of the ocean floor and

structures of different density

below the floor.

Rocks, sunken ships, mud,

sand and masses of animals

all have different densities.

An airgun array, such as this, shoots

compressed air that makes noise

used to map the sea floor and what

lies beneath it.


They reveal these features as

discrete images. This is useful

not only for the study of

physical attributes of the

ocean floor, but also for

studying habitats, which aids

in determining the numbers of

organisms in a given area.Reflection of sound waves off of hard surfaces

and back up to a receiver can be used to accurately determine the shape of the sea floor.


Refraction of sound waves are good for more accurate

study of what lies below the surface because sound travels

through, and bounces off, different seafloor sediments in

very different ways.

An image created by profiling

below the seafloor (called

sub-bottom profiling) using a

bottom-penetrating sounder.

Technology Technology –– AcousticAcoustic

Towed ArraysTowed Arrays

Emit and receive sound for

acoustic research. They are

towed behind a research vessel

and are one to several units

long.

They provide an advantage over

devices attached to a ship in that

they are farther away from

interfering engine noises.

They can work in concert with each other to provide an overlapping series

of emitted sounds and of reflected sounds. This creates a higher resolution

acoustic image.

TechnologyTechnology

TransportationTransportation

ObservationObservation

-- AcousticAcoustic

-- OpticalOptical

Technology Technology –– OpticalOptical

Video Plankton Recorders (Video Plankton Recorders (VPRsVPRs))

VPRs afford a relatively

inexpensive and effective way of

sampling large portions of the

ocean for pelagic organisms. In

VPRs a towed box moves water

past a video camera, recording

images either continually or at

pre-determined times.

They can be set to different

resolutions to record a variety of

planktonic organisms as small

as some diatoms, but are ideal

for imaging larger zooplanktonsuch as copepods and the

larvae of many other marine

animals.



Underwater video microscope

system that that takes images of

plankton and particulate matter

as small as 50 microns and up to

a few centimeters in size.

The instrument is used to help

scientists quickly measure the

distributional patterns of

plankton without destroying their

delicate forms, as can happen

when using nets and bottles.



How does it work?A video camera mounted in one of the

arms focuses on a point midway

between the two arms. A strobe on the

other arm illuminates the imaged

volume and flashes 60 times per

second, producing 60 images per

second of the particles and plankton in

the water. The images are then saved

internally on a computer hard disk and

later plotted.



VPRs can be towed by research

vessels or commercial cargo ships

that cross large areas of the ocean.

For maximum effectiveness, they can

be attached to trawls and other

sampling instruments to obtain an

accurate and useful picture of the

diversity of plankton in the open

ocean.


Optical plankton counters (Optical plankton counters (OPCsOPCs) & Laser ) & Laser OPCsOPCs

Optical plankton (or particle) counters

work in a similar way to VPRs,

allowing a stream of ocean water to

pass by a recording device that can

count the number of plankton-sized

particles in the water.

When calibrated with the speed of

the vessel towing the OPC,

scientists can calculate the

amount of water sampled to

determine the number of

organisms per volume of ocean

water.



In addition to counting the number of

particles of different sizes, laser OPCs

can record an image of the silhouette

of particles passing through it,

allowing for species identification of

certain larger planktonic organisms

such as krill and large copepods



Like VPRs, OPCs are generally

housed inside a towed vehicle such as

the Moving Vessel Profiler (MVP) or

attached to trawls, etc., to allow for a

more thorough investigation of the

marine environment.

Jumbo squid cruiseJumbo squid cruise

(Using O(Using OPCPC in Panama)in Panama)


Chill out moments after using OChill out moments after using OPCPC!!!!!! The best fisherman


Time-Lapse Cameras

In order to view what is happening

below the ocean surface,

oceanographic researchers use a

variety of still-image and video

cameras.

Some cameras hang suspended

in the water column, observing

pelagic life, while others are

placed on the seafloor, to catalog

the diversity of the benthos.


Time-Lapse Cameras

These cameras are generally

combined with other instruments that

record the physical properties of the

surrounding waters, such as

temperature, salinity, and available

light and nutrients.


Time-Lapse Cameras

One of the latest pieces of technology

used by Census researchers is the

"bathysnap," a camera that can take

multiple images over a preset period

of time (called time-lapse

photography).


Time-Lapse Cameras

This camera sits on a large tripod on the sea floor to collect images, over time, of

the benthic habitat. The camera uses powerful flash bulbs to light up a

photographed area approximately 2m2, acting like a photographic quadrat

sample. Combined with instruments that record current speed and direction as

well as the temperature of the water, the Time-Lapse Camera Tripod provides

scientists with data on the movement and basic behavior of deep-sea organisms

in the context of the physical conditions they experience. This technology is a

great research tool for viewing the ocean floor and its inhabitants.


Time-Lapse Cameras

Combined with instruments that record current speed and direction as well as the

temperature of the water, the Time-Lapse Camera Tripod provides scientists with

data on the movement and basic behavior of deep-sea organisms in the context

of the physical conditions they experience. This technology is a great research

tool for viewing the ocean floor and its inhabitants.


Time-Lapse Cameras

Combined with instruments that record current speed and direction as well as the

temperature of the water, the Time-Lapse Camera Tripod provides scientists with

data on the movement and basic behavior of deep-sea organisms in the context

of the physical conditions they experience. This technology is a great research

tool for viewing the ocean floor and its inhabitants.


Sediment Profile Imaging (SPI)

SPI allows researchers to

quickly and easily take pictures

of the top layers of the seafloor.

A camera is mounted to a prism

that is pushed 15 to 20

centimeters (~6-8 inches) deep

into the sediment.



A mirror on the prism reflects a

perfect cross-sectional image up

to a camera. This technique

minimizes disturbance and is

therefore an effective method of

studying biodiversity as well as

biological (ex. animal burrows)

and physical (ex. sediment

layering) features.



A series of photographs can be

taken to produce a time-lapse

movie that provides scientists

with information about how

organisms behave and how the

structure of the sediment

changes.



Advantages

Useful tool for rapidly collecting data and analyzing a suite of seafloor parameters. These include:

1. sediment grain size,

2. camera prism penetration depth (an indirect measure of sediment density),

3. transition between oxygenated surface sediments and underlying sediments with little or no oxygen (called the apparent redox potential discontinuity layer),



Advantages

4. biological successional stage

5. presence of methane gas bubbles, burrows, fauna, and dredged material.

Limitations

. The small sample "footprint" is the main

limitation of this technique. It is difficult to relate the sample footprint to an entire habitat, so SPI is

often used in combination with other techniques.


Underwater Video Profiler (UVP)

In addition to plankton, this

instrument can study suspended

particles and environmental

conditions associated with the

observed organisms.

The UVP uses high-resolution

cameras and a powerful lighting

system to record video of

zooplankton and large

phytoplankton as it passes

through the water column.


Underwater Video Profiler (UVP)

The profiler's images are not

quantitative like those from an

Optical Plankton Counter, but

this technology does provide a

useful catalog of organisms

found at different depths at a

given research site.

The profiler can generate

spectacular images similar to

those from a ROV or manned

submersible, but at much less

effort and expense.


Autonomous Lander Vehicles


(ALV) are designed to record

time-lapse photographic images

of marine life on the ocean floor

down to depths of 6000 meters.



The basic ALV is a metal frame that

supports a host of scientific

instruments to measure physical

properties such as conductivity,

temperature, depth, and current

speed. With high resolution

photographic equipment, they can

autonomously record time-lapse

images over a period from days to

months.



All Landers are positively buoyant,

so that when they have completed

their tasks, weights can be released

by an acoustic command from a

Research Vessel. The Autonomous

Lander Vehicle then ascends to the

ocean surface for recovery.



Much is stilll unknown about organisms living at these extreme depths. ALV

technology is proving valuable in gaining an understanding of the distributions,

abundances, and lifestyles of deep-sea benthic organisms.


Quadrat Sampling- Passive

Quadrat sampling is a

classic tool for the study

of ecology, especially

biodiversity. In general,

a series of squares

(quadrats) of a set size

are placed in a habitat of

interest and the species

within those quadrats are

identified and recorded.



Passive quadrat sampling

(done without removing

the organisms found

within the quadrat) can

be either done by hand,

with researchers carefully

sorting through each

individual quadrat or,

more efficiently, can be

done by taking a

photograph of the

quadrat for future

analysis.



Abundances of

organisms found at the

study site can be

calculated using the:

.number found per

quadrat and

. the size of the quadrat

area.

Technique that is best

suited for coastal areas

where access to a habitat

is relatively easy.

Documents

Investigating marine liferarosa/class/5thbw.pdf · In these cases, hi-tech instruments and unmanned vehicles are used. Tecnology - Transportation Research Vessels (R/Vs) Technology