How Sail Drones Are Helping Scientists Explore The Ocean (Watch)

Oceans cover 70% of Earth’s surface, but there’s still so much to be explored.

The video below shows how scientists are using drones powered by wind to explore seafloor topography.

Check it out:

Freethink: “Oceans cover 70% of Earth’s surface. But there’s still so much we don’t understand about oceans, from seafloor topography to what surface conditions are like in a certain part of the world at any given time.

One problem is size: It’s expensive, impractical, and fuel-intensive to have many manned ships roaming the oceans. That’s why Saildrone is building a fleet of unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) to constantly monitor the conditions of the world’s oceans.

Each Saildrone carries 20 scientific sensors that can measure things like water temperature changes, wildlife activity, CO2 concentration, and pollution. Saildrones can stay out at sea for months — or even years — without needing to refuel.

And when they do require fuel or maintenance, the drones simply guide themselves back to port. The long-term vision of Saildrone is to be able to measure every aspect of the oceans’ health — from pollution to fish populations — in real time.”