AI, Machine Learning, seen revolutionizing undersea activities - Seapower

Artificial intelligence, machine learning and unmanned systems are enabling surface and undersea activities even while COVID-19 hampers the ability to put humans on ships, maritime leaders said during a webinar on Sept. 17. Retired Rear Adm. Tim Gallaudet, deputy administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the former Oceanographer of the Navy, said COVID has put ship deployments on hold for months, but the agency has leveraged autonomous systems to keep the work going. For instance, NOAA sent Sail Drones to Alaska to perform a critical fishery survey and for coastal mapping. "We were able to map in pretty shallow areas that would have been hazardous for ships," Gallaudet said in the webinar, hosted by the Marine Technology Society's Washington section and the company Oceaneering. NOAA was also able to use underwater gliders to measure water temperatures, which helped accurately predict the track of Hurricane Laura.