Title :
Ocean Outfall Mapping Using an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle
Author :
Niu, H. ; Husain, T. ; Veitch, B. ; Bose, N. ; Adams, S. ; He, M. ; Lee, K.
Author_Institution :
Memorial Univ. of Newfoundland, St. John´´s
fDate :
Sept. 29 2007-Oct. 4 2007
Abstract :
Ocean outfalls are difficult to observe and the traditional monitoring methods are expensive and can only provide limited information. As an alternative, Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) have proved to be an effective tool for outfall mapping. This paper describes an outfall mapping mission by the MUN Explorer AUV off the east coast of Canada. A submerged freshwater outfall with Rhodamine WT dye was discharged into a bay and the MUN Explorer AUV equipped with a fluorometer was used to measure the dye concentration and the extent of the dispersed plume. The results have shown that the AUV can be effectively used to map the outfall and future work is needed to provide more detailed plume information.
Keywords :
diffusion; oceanographic techniques; remotely operated vehicles; spectrochemical analysis; underwater vehicles; water pollution; Canada east coast; MUN Explorer AUV; autonomous underwater vehicle; dispersed plume extent; fluorometer; ocean outfall mapping; rhodamine WT dye; submerged freshwater outfall; Automotive engineering; Educational institutions; Helium; Instruments; Monitoring; Oceans; Pressure control; Sampling methods; Sea surface; Underwater vehicles;
Conference_Titel :
OCEANS 2007
Conference_Location :
Vancouver, BC
Print_ISBN :
978-0933957-35-0
Electronic_ISBN :
978-0933957-35-0
DOI :
10.1109/OCEANS.2007.4449238