Incorporation of Sensors into Autonomous Gliders for 4-D Measurement of Bio-optical and Chemical Parameters

Oceanographers would like a detailed, 4-D view of the ocean. Moorings and ships cannot provide it. Conventional autonomous underwater vehicles might, but are too expensive and too limited in duration and range. We have developed and deployed a small (1.8 m, 52 kg) underwater glider that moves horizontally and vertically using buoyancy and wings. It can perform hundreds of cycles per launch from surface to 2,000 m or less, report data back (including GPS location) in real time upon each surfacing, and be reprogrammed from shore. It currenly measures only physical parameters. Our partnership seeks to expand the glider's sensors to include dissolved oxygen and various inherent optical properties of the water, all measured at the same time and space scales as the physics. To do this, we propose to design and build miniaturized sensors to incorporate them into the glider, and to to extensive engineering and scientific demonstration field tests.