Bioacoustical Oceanography: Dual-Beam Acoustics Deployed on a Multiple Opening/Closing Net and Environmental Sensing System

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Cornell University and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution will collaborate on an ocean sciences instrumentation development project to upgrade a MOCNESS (Multiple Opening / Closing Net and Environmental Sensor System) by adding a dual beam bio-acoustic sonar system plus an electro-fiber optic cable. The project represents the next logical step in improving the quality of data collected by these widely used systems that are employed in studies of plankton distribution and ecology. The dual beam bioacoustic sonar will enable scientists to correlate acoustic signals with animals actually captured in the net system. Investigations of animal distributions will be improved by being able to modify ongoing sampling programs based on concurrent data, and study small scale distributions of organisms relative to what the net captured. The data stream from the bioacoustic sonar plus the environmental sensors exceeds the telemetry capability of currently used electro-mechanical cables. The new system will make use of rapidly advancing fiber-optic cable technology that can carry larger data streams. The system will have broad application in planned ocean science research initiatives.