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Underwater Robotic Technology for Imaging Mesophotic Coral Ecosystems

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Book cover Mesophotic Coral Ecosystems

Part of the book series: Coral Reefs of the World ((CORW,volume 12))

Abstract

The development of advanced acoustic and optical imaging techniques along with autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) and remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) has enabled high-resolution benthic mapping and biological characterization of mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCEs) over large spatial scales. Underwater vehicles can be grouped into tethered and untethered vehicles. Tethered vehicles allow the pilot on the ship to remotely control the vehicle using live video streaming. Tethered vehicles include ROVs, towed sleds, and drop cameras. Untethered vehicles, particularly AUVs, rely on autonomy for navigation, obstacle avoidance, and situational awareness. Untethered vehicles also include manned submersibles and Lagrangian buoys. Hybrid remotely operated vehicles combine the capabilities of both AUVs and ROVs into one vehicle. Acoustic mapping using side-scan or multibeam sonars can offer much broader coverage than optical imaging and can be useful for habitat mapping. However, acoustic data generally have lower spatial resolutions and are more difficult to interpret since similar acoustic returns can correspond to more than one bottom type. Optical imaging from still and video cameras at close range delivers high-resolution data that are easy to interpret. Increased precision in underwater navigation enables time series of georeferenced optical and acoustical imagery for fine-scale detection of changes over longer temporal scales of years to decades. This chapter provides a summary of the advantages and disadvantages of both tethered and untethered vehicles for studies of MCEs, including their various imaging modalities, as well as illumination, positioning, navigation, and imaging considerations.

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Acknowledgments

We thank the support from the University of Sydney and the IMOS AUV Facility including past and present technical officers and operations team of this facility. Development of the University of Puerto Rico SeaBED AUV was funded by NSF MRI grant OCE-0722815 to R. Armstrong.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Marine Sciences, University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, PR, USA

    Roy A. Armstrong

  2. Australian Centre for Field Robotics, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia

    Oscar Pizarro

  3. Graduate School of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island, Narragansett, RI, USA

    Christopher Roman

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  1. Roy A. Armstrong
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  2. Oscar Pizarro
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  3. Christopher Roman
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Correspondence to Roy A. Armstrong .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, School of Zoology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel

    Yossi Loya

  2. National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Silver Spring, MD, USA

    Kimberly A. Puglise

  3. Biodiversity and Geosciences Program, Museum of Tropical Queensland, Queensland Museum Network, Townsville, QLD, Australia

    Tom C.L. Bridge

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Armstrong, R.A., Pizarro, O., Roman, C. (2019). Underwater Robotic Technology for Imaging Mesophotic Coral Ecosystems. In: Loya, Y., Puglise, K., Bridge, T. (eds) Mesophotic Coral Ecosystems. Coral Reefs of the World, vol 12. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-92735-0_51

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