A landmark project supported by the Innovative Solutions Canada (ISC) “Real-Time Marine Mammal Monitoring Service via Uncrewed Surface Vehicle” program has successfully demonstrated a novel and effective method for real-time marine mammal monitoring.
In a collaborative effort, JASCO Applied Sciences and SeaTrac Systems deployed an advanced Passive Acoustic Monitoring (PAM) system aboard SeaTrac’s SP-48 Uncrewed Surface Vehicle (USV).
Equipped with JASCO’s acoustic technology, a collapsible directional array and heave-compensating winch, the system successfully detected several endangered North Atlantic Right Whales during trials conducted off the coasts of Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
Traditional PAM systems rely on towed arrays, which require continuous vehicle movement and limit deployment duration.
This new innovative approach replaces the towed array with a dipping, collapsible array that supports “sprint and drift” operations, enabling the USV to collect data while stationary.
This method significantly reduces energy consumption, allowing for extended deployments and broader coverage.
Between December 14, 2024, and April 7, 2025, four field trials were conducted in various sea states and locations, including Marblehead, MA, Point Judith, RI, and Cape Cod Bay, MA.
These tests confirmed the system’s ability to operate reliably and autonomously in challenging conditions while consistently delivering high-quality acoustic data.
SeaTrac custom-designed its solar-powered SP-48 USV with a deep keel to enhance stability and to provide precise support for JASCO’s specialized equipment.
Its 48V battery powered JASCO’s heave-compensating winch which was controlled by an onboard single-board computer (SBC) to deploy and retrieve the collapsible acoustic array.
JASCO’s array features a unique collapsible design with four adjustable arms and a fabric damper to minimize motion interference. When lowered, the array unfolds into a compact spatial configuration that captures high-quality acoustic data, which is streamed in real-time to the SBC.
At the system’s core is JASCO’s OceanObserver, an integral component of the collapsible array responsible for streaming real-time data to the SBC. Data is processed by JASCO’s StreamRepeater and PAMlab-INT software packages.
Processed marine mammal detections, ambient sound reports, and operational summaries are sent to JASCO’s shore-based software for continuous monitoring and reporting via Iridium Certus and Starlink satellite communication.
The real-time reporting capability of this USV-based system offers a significant advantage over traditional gliders which require surface events to transmit data.
The continuous connectivity of SeaTrac’s SP-48 allows users to remotely download data, reconfigure detectors, and troubleshoot the system via a Secure Shell (SSH) 24/7.
The success of these trials underscores several key benefits of using USVs equipped with dipping arrays for marine monitoring:
Shallow-Water Operation: USVs can operate effectively in shallower waters compared to towed arrays or gliders, increasing their versatility.
Real-Time Communication: Unlike underwater gliders with data latency and limited bandwidth, SeaTrac’s USV supports continuous, high-bandwidth communication, enabling real-time monitoring, system diagnostics, and remote adjustments.
“Sprint and Drift” Capability: This novel operational mode allows for extended mission durations and efficient energy use.
The project trials have successfully demonstrated JASCO and SeaTrac’s ability to conduct “sprint and drift” acoustic operations in challenging marine environments, showcasing the solution’s adaptability to varying weather conditions and operational demands for effective real-time marine mammal monitoring.
“Directogram” showing 75 seconds of acoustic data from the collapsible array collected in Cape Cod Bay on April 6, 2025. In this figure, colors represent the direction sounds came from, as referenced by the color wheel in the top-right corner.
During this time frame, calls were detected from at least three, possibly four, North Atlantic Right Whales, with sound coming from the Southwest (green), Northeast (orange/red) and West (light blue).
