Overview
BRIDGES (Bringing together Research and Industry for the Development of Glider Environmental Services) will provide a necessary tool for further understanding, improved monitoring, and responsible exploitation of the marine environment while assuring its long-term preservation.
This new tool, a robust, cost-effective, re-locatable, versatile and easily deployed ocean glider, will support autonomous, long-term in-situ exploration of the deep ocean at large spatio-temporal scales. The sole European underwater glider: SeaExplorer will be modularized, new sensors will be developed, and the operational methodology will be modified, such that new horizons of service will be opened.
It will be improved by:
- adapting for deep basins (up to 5000 m),
- implementing a novel payload architecture to increase autonomy and to accommodate the range of sensing capabilities needed,
- integrating the associated control support system for single and networked operations (mission behaviour, data management, planning, communications).
The glider’s sensing capabilities will be enhanced. The main modules are planned for:
- environmental monitoring for facilitating the effective implementation of an ecosystem-based management under the Marine Strategy Framework Directive
- the oil and gas industry, and
- the deep-sea mining industry.
In order to achieve the technological objectives and meet service requirements, an open dialogue between stakeholders will be developed. The basic premises of the present call “Delivering sub-sea technologies for new services at sea-BG-06-2014,” are answered thoroughly: the ability to execute unmanned underwater operations, to operate in the deep ocean, and to assess the environmental impact of the maritime economy. In addition, this project will realize and promote the creation of collaborations among sensor and platform manufacturers, oil and gas and mining companies, public health and safety departments, and scientific and engineering experts.
Funding
Results
Periodic Reporting for period 3 - BRIDGES (Bringing together Research and Industry for the Development of Glider Environmental Services)
Working towards implementation of the Europe 2020 strategy for sustainable growth in the marine and maritime sectors necessitates the development and application of advanced technology to enable smarter, reliable and more cost-effective methods of operating at-sea. Improved operational capabilities are required such as increased autonomy, working at extreme depths, more sophisticated sensing of the water column, the deep-sea environment and their resources. The expected increase in ocean industrialization generates an immediate need for smarter and safer technology to support long-term exploration and monitoring services of the coastal and deep ocean while controlling the potential impact of these activities on the marine environment.
The BRIDGES project (Bringing together Research and Industry for the Development of Glider Environmental Services) aimed to address this demand by providing a necessary tool for further understanding, improved monitoring, and responsible exploitation of the marine environment while assuring its long-term preservation.
The main objectives of the BRIDGES project were to develop and demonstrate at-sea two new glider prototypes with improved sensing capabilities capable of operating in extreme depths and designed to provide cost-effective services to key marine markets. This was to be achieved by:
• Further improving on existing European glider technology by development of two new glider prototypes, extending operating capabilities to depths of 2,400m (Deep Explorer) and 6,000m (Ultradeep Explorer),
• Enhancing sensing capabilities with novel, sophisticated payloads to demonstrate exploration and monitoring service capabilities for a wide range of science and industry domains,
• Developing on-board and onshore intelligent management systems to provide a high level of autonomy for gliders and glider fleets,
• Standardisation of glider data and hardware to facilitate the exploitation and commercialisation of the platform and resulting data products, including integration into national, regional and global observing systems.