The robot revolution began a decade ago with ‘Asimo’ by Honda.

Now, bolder and bolder robots have debuted from likely sources (DARPA, Air Force, etc), and unlikely ones (Kickstarter, MIT, etc).

A new aquatic ‘bot from Virginia Tech may one day be used to keep our oceans safe.

Nicknamed ‘Cyro’, this five-foot, seven-inches jellyfish robot is a machine to behold.

It’s extremely lifelike in its functions and programming, and from a distance could fool even the most veteran of marine researchers.

And that’s the main idea.

Cyro will one day patrol for illegal dumping, pollution, and spills off our nation’s coast and in deeper waters. Since it mimics the likeness of a real jellyfish, illegal dumpers and fishers won’t suspect their actions are being monitored.

The first version of Cyro, aptly named ‘RoboJelly’, was about the size of a man’s hand. It mimics the type of jellyfish one would find on a beach. Alex Villanueva, a doctoral student in mechanical engineering at VT said they needed to create a larger version of RoboJelly for practical purposes.

“A larger vehicle will allow for more payload, longer duration and longer range of operation. Biological and engineering results show that larger vehicles have a lower cost of transport, which is a metric used to determine how much energy is spent for traveling”

The project was funded by the U.S. Naval Undersea Warfare Center and the Office of Naval Research. The government gave Virginia Tech a $5 million grant to create their robots.

Other intended uses for Cyro will be mapping ocean floors, monitoring currents, studying aquatic life, etc.

One of the main reasons researchers chose jellyfish as the marine animal to mimic in robotic form is because of the minimal amount of energy needed to operate the ‘bots. They’re also a popular animal in every major oceanic area in the world, which helps the surveillance aspect of their programming.

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NOAA ocean explorers used an advanced multibeam sonar mapping system on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer in November to discover and map the first deep water gas seeps found off the U.S. Atlantic Coast north of Cape Hatteras.

The seeps were found at water depths greater than 3,300 feet. Based on preliminary information, scientists believe the seeps are likely emitting methane gas.

Locating seeps with this advanced technology will expand opportunities for researchers to study how seeps in the deep ocean environment affect ocean chemistry. NOAA’s use of advanced technology to discover seeps will benefit other agencies, including the U.S. Geological Survey.

The seeps were mapped between November 2^nd to November 20th 2012 at three different locations with water depths of 3,300 to 5,250 feet. Approximately 25 distinct seafloor gas seeps were identified based on plumes rising into the water column as high as 3,600 feet. The sites are between 91 and 101 miles off shore, with one site east of Cape Henry, Va., and two sites south and southeast of Nantucket Island, Mass.

Single beam sonar systems have been used extensively to map gas seeps but do not provide as much coverage as typically collected by multibeam systems. Multi-beam sonar obtains information from a fan-shape of beams, mapping a wider area more quickly and efficiently. Most multibeam sonars cannot process sonar signals from water-column seeps but the multibeam sonar on Okeanos Explorer is one of the few that is specially configured to do so.

NOAA’s Office of Ocean Exploration and Research is the only federal program that systematically explores Earth’s largely unknown ocean. The 224-ft. NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer, homeported in Davisville, R.I., is operated by NOAA’s Office of Marine and Aviation Operations, and NOAA’s Office of Ocean Exploration and Research operates the cutting-edge ocean exploration systems on the vessel and ashore.

NOAA’s mission is to understand and predict changes in the Earth’s environment, from the depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and to conserve and manage our coastal and marine resources.

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NOAA
Image: NOAA

The effects of oils spills are devastating. Wildlife are killed or injured which affects the food chain, which in turn affects us.

The reasons for oil spills can vary. Ships may have machinery break down or fail which in turn causes a spill. The people managing the ship may have made careless mistakes. Natural disasters may cause an oil spill too. If a hurricane was a couple of miles away, the winds from the hurricane could cause the oil tanker to flip over, pouring oil out and spreading it. Illegal dumpers dump oil into the oceans because they do not want to spend money on decomposing their waste oil.

Many animals can die from having their coats or feathers covered in oil. They try to clean themselves and are poisoned by the toxic oil. Animals may also die from the oil blinding them. The animal will not be able to see and be aware of their predators, resulting in their death. Even if they survive they may be damaged by the oil and take years and years to recover.

There are many ways to stop the spread of oil in the ocean.

A boom is a temporary floating barrier used to contain an oil spill. They reduce polluting the shoreline and help concentrate oil so that other methods of cleaning are more effective. A boom can be placed around the tanker that is spilling oil or around an entrance to the ocean, like a stream. They also can be placed around a habitat with many animals living there. These booms will absorb any oil that flows around it.

A wonderfully eco-friendly way to create a boom is by using hair or fur, as they absorb oil so effectively. Other materials are sponges and booms made of chemicals. Using hair is a great alternative to dropping chemicals into the ocean that can break down the oil.  It is also an environmentally friendly way of collecting the oil as opposed to burning freshly spilled oil with fireproof booms, which causes pollution.

If you want to donate your hair, look to your local Council or Municipality if they have any programs in place of collecting hair. Some hairdressers send cut hair off to environmental organisations to be made into booms. Pet grooming businesses can do the same.  Care2 Make A Difference

Plastic bags last for five hundred to a thousand years