Intelligence: Autonomous, Persistent, Indestructible
January 2, 2022:
For over a decade AUVs (autonomous unmanned underwater vehicles) have been used commercially for underwater research. For a decade the military has been using AUVs to monitor underwater conditions to assist submarine operations or even detect the presence of a passing submarine. What the navy wanted was a surface version, or ASV (autonomous unmanned surface vehicle). Now they have one; the Saildrone Explorer. This is a seven meter (23 feet) long vessel propelled by a five meter (15 foot) high sail and powered by solar panels on the sail. Underneath the Explorer are two fins that stabilize the ASV and maintain or change direction. Average speed is nearly six kilometers an hour. Range and endurance are virtually unlimited as the Explorer was designed to withstand rough seas and high winds. Many missions last up to a year, at which point the Explorer is directed to a location where it can be picked up, checked out and, if needed, have repairs made, upgrades added or a new sensor package installed.
Currently there are three sensor packages. The Metocean package monitors and records water salinity, temperature, dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll, wind speed/direction and wave height/duration. The Carbon package monitors atmospheric and dissolved carbon dioxide. The Fisheries package monitors ocean currents, fish biomass and backscatter. The navy wants to add an intel package that would monitor the presence of surface ships using day/night cameras, radar and radio receivers to detect the automated transponders all large vessels are supposed to carry. The Explorer has onboard GPS and a computer containing software that can determine which data is most significant and use the encrypted satellite data link to send it back to the Saildrone control center in California, where operators monitor the location of many Explorer ASVs and can send them instructions on where to move to next. Usually, an Explorer is given a route to monitor or traverse. This was tested, along with the durability of Explorer, when one made a 196-day voyage around Antarctica. During that voyage the ASV endured freezing temperatures, detected and avoided icebergs, and bumped into a few, while surviving 16-meter (50 foot) waves and winds of up to 140 kilometer (80 miles) an hour. This voyage covered over 24,000 kilometers (nearly 14,000 nautical miles). This epic test began and ended in New Zealand. So far Explorer ASVs have spent over 15,000 days at sea and none have been lost.
https://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htintel/articles/20220102.aspx
