Wednesday, February 12, 2025

As Greenland’s glaciers melt, Denmark charts the changing waters

DGA nautical chart Greenland Kort 2750
Mariners should be aware that the majority of the paper charts for Greenland were originally compiled in the 1960s.
The source material on which these paper charts are based had limitations, especially with regard to their geometric accuracy.
The positioning of the information in these paper charts (i.e. topography, including the coastline, and hydrography) is therefore not accurate.
Since the positioning accuracy that can be achieved with satellite navigation systems (for instance GPS) is better than that of the paper charts, mariners are advised to use sources of positional information other than satellite navigation systems. 
see DGA
 
From ESRI by Steve Snow
 
Danish Geodata Agency modernizes chart-making workflows to keep pace with Greenland’s melting sea ice and glaciers.
Electronic Navigational Charts give ship captains accurate, timely information.
Scientists, fishermen, and miners to benefit from better navigational charts of Greenland.

Denmark once experienced its own Titanic moment.
On its maiden voyage on Jan. 30, 1959, Danish liner MS Hans Hedtoft struck an iceberg off the coast of Western Greenland.
All 95 passengers and crew on board were lost, and the wreckage of the ship has never been found.
Like the Titanic, the ship had been described as unsinkable.

This tragic event sparked a flurry of navigational charting activity by Danish Geodata Agency.
Prior to the incident, the world had long needed good charts for all of Greenland.

 
“In the 1960s, we used all available bathymetric and topographic sources in order to create the first set of Greenlandic charts,” said Rune Carbuhn Andersen, head of the Arctic Division of the Danish Hydrographic Office, a department within the Danish Geodata Agency. 
“The coastline for the charts was established in the 1940s and 1950s, and it still forms the foundation for the majority of the Greenlandic charts available today. Though the charts were accurate for the time, we now have to georectify old data with new data to produce an update.”

The renewed charting effort comes at a time when the world’s eyes are on Greenland.
Many compare the country to a canary in the coal mine for climate change because of its rapidly melting ice sheets.
Greenland’s navigational charts need to be updated to reflect the country’s changing coastline.
And scientists, eager to monitor the melting ice, need to know how to safely navigate the waters.

 
A tourist icebreaker moors off the coast of Greenland in Arctic waters.
Icebergs appear in the background.

Resource Challenges and Economic Opportunities


The possibility of ice-free Arctic waters is creating a growing demand for the region’s natural resources—minerals, uranium, petroleum, and fish once blocked by sea ice are now accessible and can become a part of global markets.

The largely untouched fish stocks drew interest first, given increasing pressure to feed the world’s growing population.
A recent historical agreement on fishing prevents an unregulated and chaotic free-for-all.
On the signing of this new accord, Denmark’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Anders Samuelsen commented, “when the ice melts, we will face new challenges but also new opportunities. We need to manage both.”

With the melting, other new economic opportunities have come to this isolated island. Mining has recently emerged as a growth sector.
A ruby pink sapphire mine operated by Norway’s LNS Group opened in 2017 and an anorthosite mine (a source for both calcium and aluminum) run by Canada’s Hudson Resources opened in February 2019. 
China has expressed interest in mining and other natural resources extraction and has framed the idea of a ‘Polar Silk Road’ to develop shipping lanes and build infrastructure throughout the Arctic.

This growing global economic interest fuels the need for updated charts that can enable safe passage and navigation.
“It’s very important for us to get all of the navigationally significant information that we have in the charts as soon as possible,” Andersen said. 
“We have one primary demand, and that’s safety at sea.”

 
The rapidly melting ice in Greenland has caught the world's attention,
increasing visits to this remote island.

Meeting the Safety Mission

Greenlandic waters are inherently dangerous, due to sea ice obstacles and unseen underwater rocks, frigid water temperatures, and swiftly changing weather.

“Fog and snow can come in very quickly,” Andersen said.
“If you’re in a big ship on a big route, it doesn’t matter that much. If you’re in a smaller boat, then it gets dangerous.”

The short summer season and large and complex state of Greenland’s surrounding waters makes frequent surveying impossible.
The goal for Andersen and his team is to define and survey navigational routes.
They work to provide more than one route in a given area because fast-moving glacier ice often fills up an entire fjord, making the waters of a route unnavigable.

The Danish Navy produces most of the seabed mapping using multibeam echosounders.
This type of sonar system measures the two-way travel time of sound waves transmitted from the vessel and received from a wide swath that is depth-dependent.
Precision in measurement of time, vessel motion, and seawater characteristics allows for accurate representation of the undersea canyons and submerged rocks that aid, or impede, navigation through the treacherous waters.

Icebergs, free-floating chunks broken from glaciers or ice shelves, also present an ongoing problem, although onboard ship radar has helped dispel some of that danger.

“When we have an accident it’s usually due to a lack of experience,” Andersen said.
“We had an accident on a very well-known rock close to Nuuk [the capital], which is an area where new and georectified charts have been released. The accident wasn’t the result of old or incorrect charts, it was probably more related to human errors on the bridge of the ship.”

 
Sea ice in the Arctic Ocean off the east coast of northern Greenland.

Digital Transformation of Surveys, Workflows, and Charts

Starting in the 1990s, the Danish Geodata Agency spent much of its time and resources getting the charts of Danish waters ready for electronic navigational charts (ENC).
This next-generation data product pushed adoption of digital workflows, allowing charting agencies to make chart updates with data collected by modern survey instruments such as GPS receivers and multibeam soundings.

“My department recently toured the bridge of one of the supply ships from Royal Arctic Lines to see how they navigate,” Andersen said. 
“They use the old paper charts along with radar, and they feel relatively safe. The problem is we can’t fit new data within these old charts and the world has long been moving to ENC.”

Capturing Greenland’s latest coastline data is an important part of the Danish Geodata Agency’s latest mission.
“Recognizing that we’re behind on Greenlandic chart production and not wanting to just sit on the latest data, we’ve tested an ENC Simple product,” Andersen added. 
 
DGA nautical raster chart coverage in the GeoGarage platform

Greenland ENC coverage
GeoGarage Google Earth ENC catalogue viewer updated kmz file

“Where we have strong confidence on our coastline data, we have auto-generated depth data for ENC Simple using multibeam readings and soundings. We gave that to a few pilots in the summer and they liked it for its added security. If they saw an iceberg in the middle of their route, it gave them confidence that they could route around it without hitting any rocks compared to just using an old paper chart with very limited depth information.”

This test has led to further experiments. 
The Danish Geodata Agency must have complete confidence in this automation before it proceeds to production because if the automated chart misinterprets the depth of a channel or fails to record dangerous obstacles that were captured on previous charts it can be sued for negligence if mapping errors cause a shipwreck.
While automation has proven helpful to both sea captains and the agency, it has yet to pass the test of becoming the authoritative charting source.
 
Kort 1250 paper map (projection Qornoq 1927) scale 1:7500
 
DK5PAAKN ENC Paamlut / scale 1:4000 / 2022

“It’s a big task to reproduce all the Greenlandic charts and ENCs given the complexity of the data and the large geographic area of sea surrounding Greenland,” Andersen said.
“Despite the challenge, it’s a matter of years before we can release new charts with new GPS correct information.
In the meantime, we hope to supplement them with alternative products like ENC Simple. But right now, we are focused on improving automation and production to get there.”
 
Links :

Tuesday, February 11, 2025

AI from Institute of Oceanology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences to improve cyclone rapid intensification forecasting



From MeteorologicalTechnologyInt by Elizabeth Baker

Researchers from the Institute of Oceanology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (IOCAS) have developed a new model for forecasting rapid intensification (RI) of a tropical cyclone (TC), based on ‘contrastive learning’.
This study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
 
AI-powered forecasting

The new model has two inputs: Input A, a known RI TC sample, and Input B, an unknown sample to be forecasted.
It extracts features from both inputs and calculates their distance in a high-dimensional space.
If the distance is small, Input B is forecasted as an RI TC; if large, it is classified as a non-RI TC.
Each unknown sample is compared with 10 known RI TC samples; if more than five of the comparisons classify it as an RI TC, it is then classified as such.


This study uses satellite imagery alongside atmospheric and oceanic data to balance RI and non-RI TC data.
The model learns to differentiate between RI and non-RI TCs by comparing the two inputs during training.

When tested on data from the Northwest Pacific between 2020 and 2021, the method achieved an impressive accuracy of 92.3% and reduced false alarms to 8.9%.
Compared with existing techniques, it improved accuracy by 12% and reduced false alarms by a factor of three, representing a major advance in forecasting.
 
Traditional tropical cyclone prediction methods

According to the team, RI of a TC, defined as a maximum sustained wind increase of at least 13m/s within 24 hours, remains one of the most challenging weather phenomena to forecast because of its unpredictable and destructive nature.
The researchers highlighted that although only 5% of TCs experience RI, its sudden and severe development poses significant risks to affected regions.

They also pointed out that traditional forecasting methods, such as numerical weather prediction and statistical approaches, often fail to consider the complex environmental and structural factors driving RI.
However, they acknowledged that while artificial intelligence (AI) has been explored as a means to improve RI prediction, most AI techniques have struggled with high false alarm rates and limited reliability.

“This study addresses the challenges of low accuracy and high false alarm rates in RI TC forecasting,” said Prof.
Li Xiaofeng, one of the authors of the report.
“Our method enhances understanding of these extreme events and supports better defenses against their devastating impacts.”

Although the IOCAS’s new model was initially trained on reanalysis data, the researchers created an operational forecasting scenario by replacing the reanalysis data with ECMWF-IFS numerical model forecast data from 2020 to 2021 as input.
The results demonstrated comparable forecasting accuracy, validating the reliability of this approach and confirming its suitability for real-time forecasting scenarios.
This capability is expected to enhance early warning systems, thus improving global disaster preparedness.

Links :

Monday, February 10, 2025

Happy Birthday, NOAA Coast Survey


218 years ago today, President Thomas Jefferson signed An Act to provide for surveying the coasts of the United States, and NOAA’s Coast Survey has helped mariners navigate with confidence ever since.


Our charting products and services have expanded considerably over the past two centuries–we’re surveying to help reopen ports within days following a disaster, and using uncrewed surface vehicles among countless other examples–but wanted to take this time to look back at nautical charts, then and now. 

You can look through our comprehensive historical chart archive, which includes charts that even pre-date the Coast Survey.
 

Links :

The Arctic: climate change’s great economic opportunity

The USGS Healy breaks ice around Renda, a Russian tanker, 250 miles south of Nome, Alaska in January 2012.

From The Economist by

An enormous prize is on offer.
When might it be grasped?

For bears of both the market and polar kind, a planet without an ice cap is a tragedy.
The Arctic is warming four times faster than the world at large, causing ice to shrink by an area the size of Austria each year.
Since the 1980s the volume of ice has fallen by 70% or more.
The Arctic’s first ice-free day may occur before 2030.

A warming Arctic should yield enormous dividends.
Retreating ice will create shipping shortcuts.
Maritime access and melting glaciers will make it easier to extract minerals, just when the world craves resources from the Arctic’s virgin geology.
Warming waters may entice hordes of fish.
This could up-end trade, energy and geopolitics.
The prospect has sparked a rush of diplomats and miners.
In December China set a world record, unveiling a “polar-ready” 58,000-tonne cargo ship.
One red-hatted politician has talked of seizing Greenland.
The obstacles, though, are as big as the opportunities.
Last month Norway paused plans for deep-sea mining; Russia’s own efforts have halted.
Can the prize be grasped?
And on what timescale?

EEZs and territorial waters of the Arctic. Shaded areas represent individual countries’ EEZs, the central unshaded area is the Arctic donut hole, points represent disputed territories; 
Council on Foreign Relations; 2014.
 
One benefit already on offer is bigger catches.
Some species, such as snow crab and Alaska’s king salmon, are struggling in warmer, somewhat acidified water.
And an international agreement has restricted fishing in the high seas.
But this is more than balanced by the fact that species from southern and temperate waters, including Atlantic cod, are moving to areas such as the Barents and Bering seas.
Nutrient-rich water could also help populations grow faster, while receding ice opens up new grounds and lengthens fishing seasons.
Mackerel did not arrive off Greenland until 2011.
By 2014 the oily fish represented 23% of the island’s total export earnings.

Such benefits may pale in comparison to those offered by new shipping routes.
To grasp how climate change may transform them, see the map below.
Melting ice could open three paths.
The first, known as the Northern Sea Route (nsr), hugs the Russian coast to connect the Barents Sea with the Bering Strait.
A second, dubbed the North-West Passage (nwp), runs along the North American Arctic coastline, from the Beaufort Sea to Baffin Bay.
Last comes the Transpolar Sea Route (tsr), which runs over the North Pole.

All three could shorten trips between Asia, North America and Europe, which account for most shipping, saving on fuel and wages.
They could also avoid chokepoints such as the Panama and Suez canals, which are busy, charge fees and, in the case of Suez, link to dangerous waters.

Exactly when these promises might be fulfilled depends on the route.
The nwp, which runs through Canada’s Arctic Archipelago, consists of narrow, winding channels.
It is melting more slowly than the nsr.
Although it stretches 1,500km, it has only one deep-water port and lacks emergency facilities.
Canada claims the nwp is in its waters; America and Europe deem it an international strait.
The route is also shallow, limiting the size of vessels.

The tsr dodges many of these problems.
It traverses the Central Arctic Ocean, which is much deeper.
It avoids territorial waters, cooling the political temperature.
And it provides the shortest route from the North Atlantic to the Pacific.
Proponents foresee thousands of vessels a year shuttling between North America and Asia, stopping en route at Alaska’s Dutch Harbour.
Even when the ice is gone, though, the route will be littered with icebergs, making it navigable only by icebreakers.
The vision of thousands of ships may have to wait until 2050 or so.


Major geopolitical changes are driving the need for U.S. attention in the Arctic, including Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the accession of Finland and Sweden to the NATO Alliance, increased collaboration between China and Russia in the region, and the accelerating impacts of climate change.
Read more on how NGA monitors this area of strategic importance  
 
Sea change

That makes the nsr the most promising option available.
The route has been open to ice-resistant ships in the summer almost every year since 2005.
Sections are navigable all year, albeit with the help of an icebreaker escort, which is expensive.
Traffic is rising nevertheless: a record 92 ships navigated the nsr last year, up from 19 in 2016.
As ice continues to melt, the nsr could appeal to two types of voyages.
One is traffic focused on the transport of resources from Russia’s far north.
The country has long aimed to secure year-round energy exports by shipping liquefied natural gas to Europe in the winter (for heating) and Asia in the summer (for cooling).
Although that grand vision receded after Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, when Europe cut some links with its neighbour, the nsr could still help Russia ship coal, gas and metals to China and India.

The route may also lure some of the traffic connecting Asia to Europe.
It is unlikely to be used much for container ships, which tend to hop along hubs in the Gulf or South-East Asia rather than travel the whole route between Europe and Asia, says Rasmus Bertelsen of the uit Arctic University of Norway.
The north’s rough seas also risk thwarting the just-in-time logistics of the modern goods trade.
However, it could reduce the distance between Rotterdam and Shanghai by 5,000km, or 25%, and slash the journey from 30 to 14 days.
As a consequence, despite the route’s defects, it could still boost overall trade between Asia and the eu by 6%, according to Eddy Bekkers, now at the World Trade Organisation, and colleagues.

The Arctic’s last prize concerns commodities.
This used to mean hydrocarbons.
The region is thought to hold 13% of the world’s undiscovered oil and 30% of untapped natural gas.
But its deposits are among the costliest to exploit—not ideal when demand for oil is flagging and a glut of natural gas, produced more cheaply in America and Qatar, is on the way.

Instead, the hope lies with the Arctic’s “green” minerals, which global warming is making more accessible.
They include cobalt, graphite, lithium and nickel, important ingredients in electric-car batteries; zinc, used in solar panels and wind turbines; copper, required for all sorts of things electric; and rare earths, crucial to many types of green and military equipment.
Niche metals including titanium, tungsten and vanadium, used to make “super-alloys”, are also prized.
Greenland looks especially well resourced in this regard.
The island has reserves of 43 out of 50 minerals deemed “critical” by the American government.
Its known rare earths amount to 42m tonnes, some 120 times more than the world mined in 2023.

Most of the Arctic’s minerals have not been mapped out in detail, notes Per Kalvig, who co-wrote a geological survey of Greenland.
As such, any exploitation could be at least a decade away.
But the International Energy Agency, an official forecaster, reckons that the global market for such minerals will double in value by 2040, if countries stick to existing climate pledges.
Western countries are also eager to discover new sources so as to bypass China, which dominates supply.

Firms that use artificial intelligence to sift through historical and scientific data in order to identify deposits could speed up progress.
Ice-capable rigs, autonomous mining vehicles, heavy-lifting drones and other technologies are being developed to withstand the Arctic.
Miners must learn how to extract and process metals that are often found in low concentrations or mingled with others.
Seven out of eight Arctic nations are members of nato; they may have to reinvent China’s techniques if they or their partners decide to limit its involvement in future projects.
 
Cold comfort

Three types of people must also be convinced: investors, national governments and locals.
Lumina Sustainable Materials, Greenland’s sole mine, offers a preview of the challenges.
Set up in 2013, it was first licensed to make a refined form of anorthosite, a light-coloured rock used in fibreglass and paint.
Yet the delicate material was too difficult to ship.
By 2020 the mine had exported little.
It took a new deep-sea port, and sustained lobbying by the firm’s new management—no longer in Vancouver but in Greenland—for Lumina to be allowed to export the rock in coarser form.
Production is set to increase to 210,000 tonnes in 2025, up from 35,000 in 2019, all of which will be shipped abroad.
The mine sits on a deposit of some 4bn tonnes.

In recent history, the Arctic’s allure has been as a place on which to put garrisons, spy devices and nuclear weapons.
Plenty of obstacles may prevent its transformation into a modern El Dorado.
Pooling the cash, tech and goodwill required to spark a boom will involve more time and effort than merely waiting for the ice to go.
Competition without co-operation risks holding back progress.
But the prize on offer is such that, over coming decades, the Arctic will surely become an economic as well as a geopolitical venue.

Links :

Sunday, February 9, 2025

Image of the week : clouds

Fallstreak hole, also known as a cavum, is a circular or elliptical gap that can appear in cirrocumulus or altocumulus clouds. caused by supercooled water in the clouds suddenly evaporating or freezing, and may be triggered by passing aircraft

Saturday, February 8, 2025

Reimaanlok: looking towards the future


In October 2019 the Marshall Islands Marine Resources Authority (MIMRA) set out on a Pacific Islander-led expedition to two of the Republic of the Marshall Islands' (RMI) most remote atolls, Bikar and Bokak.
The goal of the expedition was to conduct the country's first ecological assessment of these atolls, which will serve as baseline data for future resource management decisions.
 
Bikar & Bokak atolls in the GeoGarage platform (NGA nautical raster charts)


Links :

Friday, February 7, 2025

Transforming maritime security: Navigating cyber threats and piracy in the digital age


From BusinessDay by Mujahid Al-Ibenu   

The landscape of maritime security is increasingly shaped by technological advancements and evolving global threats.
As international trade relies heavily on shipping, securing vessels, ports, and shipping routes has become a more intricate challenge.
This complexity is heightened by the growing risks posed by cyber threats and piracy, both of which demand adaptive security strategies and innovative technologies to protect the maritime sector.

source ReCAAP

The maritime industry’s journey into the digital age began in the 1990s with the introduction of technologies such as Electronic Chart Display and Information Systems (ECDIS) for navigation.
These systems enhanced operational efficiency, but cybersecurity was not a key consideration at the time.
As the industry moved away from traditional navigation methods and became increasingly reliant on digital systems, new vulnerabilities began to emerge—though their significance was not fully recognised.

1. WEST AFRICA (GULF OF GUINEA AND NIGER DELTA) Kidnappings and Robberies: In recent months, there has been a resurgence of piracy and kidnapping incidents in the Niger Delta, specifically targeting passenger boats. A worrying tactic has emerged where boat operators allegedly collaborate with pirates, feigning mechanical issues to enable attacks. Ransoms are often demanded, with abducted passengers held captive until paid.
Impact on Commercial Shipping: Given its strategic importance, the Gulf of Guinea continues to be a hotspot for maritime crime, impacting commercial vessels, especially tankers and bulk carriers. Increased vigilance is recommended for vessels operating in this region.
2. INDIAN OCEAN AND SOUTHEAST ASIAReduced Incidents, Ongoing Threats: While piracy incidents in the Indian Ocean have decreased, recent reports of armed robbery in Southeast Asia indicate that risks remain. The ReCAAP ISC reported multiple incidents in October 2024, particularly in areas like the Singapore Strait.
Collaborative Naval Efforts: Regional navies, including Indonesia and the Philippines, are stepping up patrols to counter these threats, as seen in incidents involving Chinese vessels in disputed waters.
3. MIDDLE EAST TENSIONS AND BLACK SEA CONFLICTIran-Israel Tensions: On October 26, 2024, Israel launched a significant retaliatory strike against Iran under “Operation Days of Repentance,” targeting strategic facilities, including missile and drone manufacturing sites. In response, Iran is likely to increase proxy activities through groups such as Hezbollah, raising concerns about potential attacks on maritime routes in the region.
Black Sea Grain Corridor: Russia’s intensifying attacks on Ukraine’s grain exports have heightened risks for vessels in the Black Sea. UK and EU leaders have raised alarms over the safety of maritime routes, urging increased protections for commercial vessels.
4. SOUTHEAST ASIA AND SOUTH CHINA SEAChinese Military Expansion: China’s deployment of anti-stealth radar and surveillance ships in the South China Sea is escalating tensions. With heightened naval exercises and military maneuvers from both the U.S. and allies, the region remains volatile, affecting shipping routes through these contested waters.
Piracy in the Sulu-Celebes Sea: Although there have been fewer kidnappings since 2020, concerns persist around organized crime and piracy activities targeting vessels in Southeast Asia, especially near the Philippines and Indonesia.
source : Dryad
 
In the 2000s, as the maritime industry integrated IT systems for cargo tracking and communication, cybersecurity concerns remained largely ignored.
It wasn’t until a significant cyber incident between 2008 and 2010, which involved the hacking of a vessel’s navigation system, that vulnerabilities in onboard digital systems were first exposed.
As cyberattacks grew more sophisticated, targeting shipping companies, port operators, and their employees, the maritime sector remained slow to address the growing threat.

A turning point came in 2017 when the NotPetya ransomware attack severely disrupted operations at global shipping giant Maersk.
The attack crippled container shipping, port operations, and logistics, costing the company around $300 million in recovery expenses.
In the same year, the WannaCry ransomware attack disrupted transportation networks worldwide.
These incidents further revealed the vulnerability of interconnected global trade systems to cyber threats.
In response, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) introduced cybersecurity guidelines in 2017 and mandated the inclusion of cybersecurity risk management in Safety Management Systems (SMS) for vessels by 2021.

By the early 2020s, cyberattacks targeting smaller shipping companies were on the rise, highlighting the urgent need for comprehensive cybersecurity measures throughout the maritime industry.
With ports serving as critical links in the global supply chain, securing their digital infrastructure also became a key priority.

Rear Admiral (Rtd.) David W. Titley, a recognized expert in maritime security, has been outspoken about the intersection of cybersecurity and maritime threats.
He emphasizes the growing risks in the maritime industry, noting that the sector has been slow to address these challenges.
“Digital advancements, like automation and digital navigation, have made ships more vulnerable to cyberattacks, which could disrupt global trade and threaten security,” Titley warns.

While cybersecurity threats have become more prominent, piracy remains a persistent challenge, particularly in high-risk areas like the Gulf of Aden, the Strait of Malacca, and the Gulf of Guinea.
Despite significant efforts to combat piracy, it continues to evolve in response to changing regulations and technological advancements.


Lloyd’s Register, a leading maritime risk management firm, highlights the growing risks of cyber piracy, including ransomware, navigation system hacks, and communication disruptions.
These threats can cause financial loss, endanger lives, and disrupt global trade.
Lloyd’s stresses the importance of robust cybersecurity measures on ships and in ports to mitigate these risks.

The IMO has played a pivotal role in combating piracy through frameworks like the MSC.1/Circ.1333 guidelines, which assist member states in developing national strategies to prevent piracy.
Regional cooperation, as seen with Nigeria’s “Deep Blue Project,” has been instrumental in reducing piracy through advanced technology and increased naval patrols.
However, piracy continues to evolve, with pirates now employing tactics like drones and autonomous vessels.
This evolution calls for updated counter-piracy protocols and enhanced international cooperation.
The IMO continues to encourage collaboration and the use of private maritime security contractors to improve safety in high-risk regions.

Rear Admiral Chris Parry (Rtd.) highlights the effectiveness of private maritime security contractors (PMSCs) in reducing piracy, particularly in areas like the Gulf of Aden.
However, he emphasizes the need for careful regulation to avoid legal and operational issues, ensuring their deployment complies with international laws and standards.

The advent of autonomous vessels further complicates maritime security.
While these vessels promise operational efficiency and reduced human error, they are heavily reliant on digital systems, making them vulnerable to cyberattacks.
In response, the IMO has introduced guidelines for the regulation of autonomous vessels, such as the MSC-FAL.1/Circ.3 resolution, focusing on safe operation and adherence to security standards.
As autonomous vessels become more widespread, future IMO resolutions will likely evolve to address the cybersecurity and safety challenges they present.

As the maritime industry becomes more interconnected and digitalized, the need for global resilience against both cyber threats and piracy has never been more urgent.
The IMO’s MSC.1/Circ.1331 resolution, which seeks to enhance the capabilities of developing countries in addressing maritime security threats, underscores the importance of international cooperation.
Strengthening global maritime security will depend on capacity-building, joint exercises, and the development of information-sharing networks.
 
The shipping vessel Rubymar capsizing in the Red Sea after a Houthi missile attack.
(Photo: AFP/Khaled Ziad)
 
In conclusion, the IMO should consider implementing new resolutions that mandate the inclusion of computer science professionals in maritime curricula, alongside fields like Nautical Science, Marine Engineering, and Electrical Engineering.
Cybersecurity professionals onboard play a crucial role in securing vessels’ digital infrastructure as the maritime industry becomes more technology-dependent.
Their duties include overseeing IT systems, such as navigation and communication networks, preventing cyberattacks, conducting regular risk assessments, and managing vulnerabilities.

These professionals are also responsible for training the crew on cybersecurity best practices, raising awareness about threats like phishing and malware, and ensuring compliance with international regulations, including those set by the IMO.
They work to protect sensitive data, secure communication channels, and collaborate with shore-based teams to ensure that shipboard security aligns with broader organizational policies.


As digitalization advances, the role of cybersecurity professionals in safeguarding shipboard systems, operational data, and sensitive information becomes increasingly vital.
The future of maritime security will depend on addressing the dual challenges of cybersecurity and piracy.
While digitalization and the rise of autonomous vessels bring new security risks, they also offer innovative solutions.
The IMO will remain central in shaping the future of maritime security, ensuring proactive and adaptable regulations to emerging threats.
Strong international cooperation, technological advancements, and comprehensive security strategies will be crucial in protecting the critical infrastructure that supports global trade.

Thursday, February 6, 2025

Deepwater Horizon oil spill correlates with steep declines in whale populations

Scripps Oceanography team recovering an acoustic recording package in the Gulf of Mexico.

From Scripps by Robert Monroe

After 2010 Deepwater Horizon incident, some Gulf of Mexico species densities declined as much as 83%

The occurrence of several whale and dolphin species in the Gulf of Mexico drastically dropped off in the decade following the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
The disaster produced a 149,000-square-kilometer (58,000-square-mile) oil slick and released a substantial amount of dispersed oil under the ocean surface.

Researchers from UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography, along with their colleagues, analyzed acoustic data collected over a 10-year period during and immediately after the spill.
To study the deep-diving species that live in the waters affected by the spill, they maintained autonomous listening stations at depths of more than 915 meters (3,000 feet) in the northern Gulf of Mexico.
Their findings reveal significant declines in the presence of several species of beaked whales, sperm whales and dolphins.
The data, which captured the echolocation clicks and communication signals of a diverse set of marine mammals, documents declines of up to 30% for sperm whales and 80% for beaked whales since the spill.
 


The study appeared Dec. 21 in the journal Nature Communications Earth and Environment.

Study lead author Kaitlin Frasier, a research oceanographer at Scripps Oceanography, emphasized that while the study shows a strong correlation between the spill and marine mammal declines, it does not prove that the spill caused the drop-off.
She highlighted the inherent challenges in proving such a link.

“While predicting exactly where and when a disaster will occur is challenging, advancements in technology and long-term monitoring can help us better understand and address their impacts,” Frasier said.
“By focusing on innovative solutions and sustained efforts, we can improve our ability to assess and mitigate the effects of events like oil spills, even in the most challenging offshore environments.”

The spill itself was estimated to have released 210 million gallons of oil, making it the largest marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry.
This study, like others in the wake of the disaster, was initially funded by a trust fund created as part of the legal settlements following the spill.
However, it was the determination of Scripps oceanographer John Hildebrand that made the research possible, said Frasier.
Hildebrand secured emergency funding to launch the project during the period of the spill, and pieced together support from various organizations to sustain the effort over a decade, even during periods without dedicated funding.

“The Deepwater Horizon oil spill was an unprecedented disaster that demanded a nationwide response,” said Hildebrand.
“We quickly relocated instruments from southern California to the Gulf of Mexico to gather critical data needed to understand the spill’s impact on marine mammals."

Other studies unrelated to this one had previously found rates of infant dolphin deaths in coastal waters were six times higher than normal.
A 2015 study led by the NOAA linked the spill to increased deaths of bottlenose dolphins in the gulf.
Today, settlement funds remain to assist coastal remediation efforts, but offshore impacts have been difficult to assess.

“Experts predicted minimal effects and recovery within a decade, and there is no evidence that they were correct,” said Frasier.
”Those opinions were used as the basis for the post-spill damage assessment and legal settlement.
To me, this says that we still have a lot to learn about the deep ocean and how interconnected everything in it is. Gathering data is irreplaceable, and it is central to the mission of Scripps.”

While some locations outside of the 2010 surface oil slick showed increases in whale and dolphin activity, it remains unclear whether these patterns indicate animals relocating to less impacted regions.
Frasier and her colleagues continue to investigate this question using the same High-Frequency Acoustic Recording Packages (HARPs) used in the initial study, now expanded across the entire Gulf of Mexico, including in Mexican waters.

“So far we haven't found evidence suggesting an unexpectedly large number of animals in the western Gulf,” Frasier said.
“It's unlikely that the populations simply moved out of the affected area,” Frasier said.

This ongoing research highlights the importance of long-term acoustic monitoring for understanding the impacts of environmental disasters on marine life.
By improving our understanding of these impacts, this study will help future researchers estimate damage in remote, offshore habitats, and guide recovery efforts in the event of future environmental disasters, the authors said.

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Wednesday, February 5, 2025

A flooded quarry, a mysterious millionaire and the dream of a new Atlantis

The Deep project aims to create underwater units, known as sentinels, in which people can live under the ocean and observe marine life in siyu.
Photo : Deep

From The Guardian by Lisa Bachelor
 
An innovative mission on the Welsh border, funded by an anonymous private investor, has begun work to create a ‘permanent human settlement’ under the sea

Down an easy-to-miss turnoff on the A48 just outside Chepstow on the Welsh border, the gentle rumble of trucks, cranes and people at work mixes with birdsong in what is an otherwise peaceful rural setting.
It is a crisp and sunny winter morning when I visit and, at first glance, the site appears to be little more than prefab containers and a car park.
Yet, behind the scenes a group of men and women with expertise in diving, marine biology, technology, finance, construction and manufacturing are building something extraordinary.
They have come together with a single mission statement: to make humans aquatic.


Their project is called Deep (not The Deep) and the site was chosen after a global search for the perfect location to build and test underwater accommodation, which the project founders say will enable them to establish a “permanent human presence” under the sea from 2027.
So far, so crazy sounding.
Yet Deep is funded by a single anonymous private investor with deep pockets who wants to put hundreds of millions of pounds (if not more) into a project that will “increase understanding of the ocean and its critical role for humanity”, according to a Deep spokesperson.
Its leadership team remains tight-lipped not only about the amount (they will only say it is substantially more than the £100m being invested into the Deep campus near Chepstow), but also about the investor’s identity.
Whoever is behind it, the size of the investment means that an ambitious-sounding idea appears to be swiftly becoming a reality.

Phil Short, research diving and training lead at Deep, outside the full-scale replica of the subsea sentinel habitat under construction at a site on the Welsh border.
Photograph: Mark Griffiths/the Observer


The 20-hectare (50-acre) site in Gloucestershire was once a limestone quarry that was flooded in the 1990s and used by a dive school until 2022.
Now, it is being transformed into a state-of-the-art facility that will feature accommodation units, a training school and a platform for mini submersibles to take people down to living spaces in the 80-metre deep (260ft) lake.
These underwater units, known as sentinels, will then be used to train scientists – and eventually anyone else who has the money to rent them – to live under the ocean for much longer than has ever been achieved before, and at a greater depth.
The goal is to live in the ocean, for ever.
To have permanent human settlements in all oceans across the worldMike Shackleford, chief operating officer, Deep

DEEP has announced plans to construct an underwater habitat open to the public by 2027.
Named Sentinel this modular subsea habitat aims to revolutionize underwater living, research, and observation by providing scientists unprecedented access to the depths of the ocean.
The Sentinel system is designed to facilitate extended stays underwater allowing scientists to reside at depths of up to 200 meters for as long as 28 days.
This innovative habitat offers a unique opportunity for researchers to study the continental shelves more comprehensively.
The modular design is flexible enough to support everything from short term missions to semi permanent deployments marking a significant shift in subsea habitation.
 
The units can be lowered to 200 metres (656ft) under the sea, which is where the sunlight zone ends and the twilight zone of the ocean begins.
Marine life found at that depth includes the kind of creatures most people will only ever see via David Attenborough documentaries and is a place about which we still know very little.

Mike Shackleford, Deep’s chief operating officer, explains the thought process behind the project.
“Back in the 1950s and 60s, there was a space race and an ocean race going on, and space won out.
Space is tough to get to, but once you’re up there, it’s a relatively benign environment.” The ocean is the opposite: it’s fairly easy to get to the bottom, but once you’re down there, “basically, everything wants to kill you”, he jokes.

“Yet, just about every oceanographer I’ve met says, ‘You’d be shocked at how little we know about the ocean’,” Shackleford tells me.
“So somebody has got to take those first steps to try to build some of the technology that will allow us to go down and study the ocean in situ.”

The idea of Deep’s sentinels is that, initially, people will be able to stay inside for up to 28 days at a time – though the hope is that this could one day be extended to months … and beyond.
“The goal is to live in the ocean, for ever.
To have permanent human settlements in all oceans across the world,” says Shackleford.

Jacques Cousteau led a group of ‘aquanauts’ in an underwater habitat in the Red Sea in 1963, proving that such expeditions were possible.
Photograph: Robert B Goodman/National Geographic Creative


There have been previous attempts to establish living quarters in the sea.
Jacques Cousteau pioneered underwater living in the 1960s, starting with the Continental Shelf (or Conshelf) I, a five-metre long, 2.5-metre wide steel cylinder that was set up off Marseille at a depth of 10 metres.
Cousteau went on to develop more sophisticated versions of Conshelf I at locations around the world – funded in part by the French petrochemical industry.

Cousteau eventually abandoned it for a career focused on conservation but underwater habitats remained popular for some time after, inspiring all sorts of experiments, including one by two British teenagers who lived underwater for a week off the coast of Plymouth in a steel tank they had built themselves.
The craze to conquer life under the ocean then “dropped off in the 80s”, says Shackleford.
“Humanity kind of walked away and went towards outer space.”

Nasa’s Aquarius Reef Base in the Atlantic Ocean in the Florida Keys national marine sanctuary, built in 1986, is still in use.
Photograph: J Marshall/Tribaleye Images/Alamy


The last and most sophisticated undersea habitat was the Aquarius Reef Base, five miles off Key Largo in Florida and 19 metres under the surface.
Now run by Florida International University, it was built in the 1980s and is the only underwater human habitation still used today, including for the training of Nasa astronauts as part of the space agency’s Extreme Environment Mission Operations’s (Neemo) programme.

Back in Gloucestershire we pile into a Land Rover to begin the bumpy ascent up the track that loops round the lake where, as we near the clearing at the top, we are greeted by shouting, banging and the sound of electric drills.
Everything being made by Deep is being constructed either on site or down the road at an industrial unit in Bristol, including the lifesize wooden mock-up of the sentinel that we are driving to see.

‘The perfect location to build and test underwater accommodation’: Deep’s site at a quarry lake in Gloucestershire.
Photograph: Richard Varcoe/Deep

 

 

The habitat simulator, a full-scale replica of Deep’s subsea human habitat, will be used to train divers on land before they live below the water.
Photographs: Mark Griffiths/the Observer


Standing outside the full-size underwater house gives an instant idea of the incredible scale of the undertaking.
The main recreational area is a six-metre diameter hemisphere, and the porthole windows mean that when the real thing is submerged there will be an inescapable feeling of being surrounded by the ocean and its inhabitants.
Short estimates it will take anywhere between a year and 18 months to get someone who has never dived before fully capable of running an ocean deployed sentinel system

Upstairs is a kitchen and an area that can be adapted to scientific study.
The six bedrooms are roomy and there is a fully fitted bathroom with running water and a flush toilet.
The whole thing is constructed from a type of steel specially developed to withstand the pressure at 200 metres.

Although no one working on deep-sea submersibles wants to dwell too much on the Titan tragedy – the deep-sea submersible that imploded off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada, in 2023 killing all five people on board – Phil Short, research diving and training lead at Deep, is not surprised it’s a subject that keeps coming up.
One of his primary concerns is to underline strongly the difference between this project and that of the Titan.

Deep’s engineers have been working with Det Norske Veritas (DNV), a classification and safety agency, to ensure it is fully tested and certified all the way through the design and manufacturing process.
“DNV are approving every potential design, manufacture and testing capability of our systems from day one,” Short says.
“So, when we finally get this built and we’re about to drop it in the water, it will be fully certified in class.”

The two-person mini submersible is prepared for deployment at the edge of the lake.
Photograph: Richard Varcoe/Deep


Classing is like an MOT on a car, he says: “No one reading this would think of putting their children, their partner, their family dog, in a homemade car with no test, unknown brakes, unknown gearbox, unknown engine and homemade tyres.” 
They would, he says, choose something based on how well it will protect those people.

The equipment might be certified, but what about the people who will be using it? It will be a huge task to physically and mentally train those without any experience for life under the water.
Even looking at the two-person mini submersible they have waiting for deployment at the edge of the quarry lake, I think, could I really trust it to take me a few metres below the surface of a lake, let alone convince myself to travel hundreds of metres under the sea?
Research into the effects of saturation diving on the body in the 1970s and 90s tended to be on young, fit men.
To revisit that work with a wider variety of people is going to enable better science

The philosophy behind how successfully an individual will cope, says Short, is much the same as that for training soldiers: you can do as much basic training as possible but until you’re in a firefight you don’t know how you’re going to respond.
However, the advantage of having a simulator that pretty much exactly replicates life underwater, means Deep’s dive-training team are better able to put people through their paces.

“We can basically cover that psychological aspect of: how do you feel being stuck in an environment about the size of a small family home with five other people for 28 days? We can trial that thoroughly,” says Short.
He estimates it will take anywhere between a year and 18 months to get someone who has never dived before fully capable of running an ocean deployed sentinel system.

Dawn Kernagis is director of scientific research for Deep.
We meet in London, at the end of a trip she has taken from her base in the US to see how progress is coming along at Deep campus.
Kernagis was a crew member with the Nasa Neemo mission that lived aboard the Aquarius Reef Base and so has rare first-hand experience of living underwater.

“I can still visualise what it was like to wake up in the morning there,” she says.
“We had the window just next to the bed and so you would open your eyes and see fish, stingrays and sharks swimming by.
Being able to watch those interactions was just so key.
Because, you know, we weren’t disturbing their environment, they were just doing their thing and it’s really cool to have the capability to observe that.”

Mini submersibles will take people down to living spaces in the 80m deep (260ft) lake.
Photograph: Richard Varcoe/Deep


Deep will offer the same experience but with more sophisticated accommodation, at greater depths, and allow scientists to work at those depths for greater periods of time.
Their sentinels will also be able to be redeployed to different places.
The idea is that a foundation construction will be attached in the desired location at the required depth and then the sentinels will be lowered down to click into the base like “a ski boot being locked into a ski”, Kernagis says.
The basic sentinel houses up to six people but the idea is that multiple sentinels could be attached to potentially form multi-nation, multi-purpose research stations (or perhaps, one day, an underwater village for ordinary people).

In the past, a lot of the early underwater habitats were meant to be redeployable, but it was difficult to do that, so they would be put down in one place and stay there for years.
“You’re restricting what marine science you can do if you can only do it from one place,” Kernagis says.

The sentinels will include a kitchen, study area, six bedrooms and fully fitted bathroom

Kernagis, who has a background in human physiology, is excited about being given the ability to learn more about the human body and what living at depth does to it.
Much research into the effects of saturation diving on the human body was done in the 1970s and early 1990s but it tended to be on young, physically fit men, she says.
The ability to revisit some of that work with a wider variety of people and to do it in situ, rather than potentially compromising samples by bringing them to the surface, is going to enable better science.

Kernagis thinks the relative comfort of the accommodation provided by Deep will help anyone using it.
Aquarius, for example, used a bunk-bed system with six people sleeping in one tiny space.
“Living under pressure like that, some people tended to snore louder than normal,” she says, “so we tended not to sleep as well.” Then there were the questionable bathroom facilities.
“We had a toilet that was actually part of the shower and was in the moon-pool area, which is where you go in and out for your dives. And so everything was just a curtain that you pulled. And that was it.”

Deep’s toilets, a spokesperson assures me, have been through “extensive human factors assessments to ensure that they are as comfortable as possible”.

Across the River Severn from Gloucestershire in a commercial kitchen in Avonmouth, Bristol, chef Joe Costa is trimming carrots to use in the main course of an experimental dish.
An underwater menu is one of the final, but crucial, pieces of the puzzle that Deep is working on to make life under the sea the best it can be.
They say an army marches on its stomach, so quantity, quality, taste and ease of digestion are all massive factors to make these missions successfulJoe Costa, chef

“The first hurdle was the challenge of actually being able to taste anything at depth because your tastebuds are suppressed by the pressure change,” says Costa, a classically trained chef and a diver.

He is focusing on using strong flavours that will be delivered in vacuum packs.
His initial menu sounds mouth-watering and he makes it more tantalising by describing it like he is presenting it on an episode of MasterChef.

“We start with a french onion soup, with nice cheese croutons on the top, and then we have slow roast, short-rib beef that has been marinated for a week in a sous vide (vacuum-sealed bag) in a really heavy red wine sauce.
That is served with a truffle polenta with ricotta and then, to finish, a double sticky toffee pudding, which is spiced with extra cinnamon, all spice, and star anise.”

Porthole windows mean those within will be surrounded by ocean life.
Photograph: Mark Griffiths/the Observer
 
 

Chef Joe Costa’s first attempts at presenting vegetables that are both visually appealing and easy to stow; the dive centre on the full-scale sentinel mock-up.
Photographs: Joe Costa; Mark Griffiths/the Observer


If this sounds hugely calorific, it’s because it is.
Phil Short, who at 56 boasts an impressively skinny frame, explains that as soon as anyone gets in the water, even if it’s warm, they start losing heat rapidly and their lungs have to work harder against the pressure of the water.
This raises the body’s metabolism significantly, and that’s before any physical exertion has taken place.
“I’ve spent my whole life in the water and I eat and eat and still lose weight,” he says.

A lot of the food Costa is preparing tastes too strong above the water.
The beef in the sauce was wonderfully tender but “hard to palate” he says.
Yet at depth it should hit people’s tastebuds in just the right way.
And he’s thought of every detail to make a culinary underwater experience the best it can be.
“We are thinking about doing sous vide cheese snacks as an appetiser so that when the divers come into the sentinel, they get their wet gear off and get changed and can have a little cheese board before they start their meal.” All that’s missing, it seems, is a glass of red wine.

Once Costa has created the menus they will go to a nutritionist to assess them for the required levels of vitamins and minerals and finally they will be tested under pressure in a laboratory in a diver research centre in Plymouth.
Short is unapologetic about the apparent extravagance of the food on offer.
“They say an army marches on its stomach, so quantity, quality, taste and also ease of digestion are all massive factors to make these missions successful,” he says.
“And, more importantly, for the type of people we want to put in these habitats it makes meals enjoyable, rather than just miserable.”

 

Deep’s engineers are working to fully test and certify the structure through each stage of the design and manufacturing process.
Photograph: Mark Griffiths/the Observer


Everything about Deep – the Gloucestershire campus, the size and scale of the underwater accommodation, the food and the anticipated clientele – appears to be pushing the boundaries of what has gone before.
But one thing remains constant, and that is what is waiting in the watery world below for those who brave life in the underwater housing.

“There are going to be things down there that we won’t even know to ask questions about before we descend, because we don’t know yet that they exist,” says Kernagis.

This potential is what makes work under the ocean so exciting for her.
She recalls her time towards the end of the mission on the Aquatic Reef Base when she made an excursion with a colleague in one of the submersibles outside the main habitat.

“We were wrapping up some of our sample collections and I made the comment to her that I couldn’t imagine life back on Earth.
And she turned to look at me and said, ‘We are on Earth’.
But for me it was like I was in this whole other world.”
 
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