Arctic Surveys Yielding Data and Savings
U.S.-Canada Arctic Ocean survey partnership saved costs, increased data; 2011 mission concludes joint seafloor survey operations. A recent mission marked the completion of a five-year collaboration between the United States and Canada to survey the Arctic Ocean. The bilateral project collected scientific data to delineate the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles from the coastline, also known as the extended continental shelf (ECS). The U.S. has an inherent interest in knowing…
CG Arctic Continental Shelf Research
A Coast Guard Cutter Healy boatcrew along with a scientist from Scripps Institution of Oceanography recovered a sonobuoy, Aug. 8, 2009, while on a scientific research mission in the Arctic Ocean. The 1,100-pound sonobuoy spent nearly a year on the ocean floor at a depth of almost 1,000 feet measuring ambient noise at its location. To locate and recover the device the Healy was steered to the position the sonobouy was deployed a year ago. A signal was sent from the cutter to the buoy that commanded it to release the ballast weights that held it to the bottom of ocean. After a 10-minute assent, the device reached the surface and was located by the boatcrew. The crew towed the buoy to the stern of the Healy where it was hoisted onto the ship using a large a-frame crane.