attempt to collect large amounts 

 of deep-sea information. Sound 

 echoing was used to measure ocean 

 depths in 1920, and a remotely 

 triggered camera brought back the 

 first image of a tiny portion of the 

 seafloor in 1939. Then, researchers 

 lowered a camera to make a single 

 photo and raised it to the surface 

 for reloading. 



Depth recorders debuted in 

 1954. They draw bottom contours 

 using data from pulses of sound 

 reflected by the seafloor and under- 

 lying layers of sediment and rock. In 

 1965, WHOI launched Alvin, giving 

 scientists an opportunity to see the 

 deep sea with their own eyes. 



Since then, the technology for 

 ocean exploration has advanced 

 significantly, and researchers have 

 used the new array of tools to make 

 exciting discoveries. Among these 

 finds are hydrothermal vents — 

 underwater areas where hot, 

 chemical-rich water spews from 

 the Earth's interior. Scientists 

 have also identified hundreds of 

 new species of ocean plants and 

 animals, mapped sections of the 

 ocean floor and learned more about 

 the Earth's geologic history. 



And if meeting Jason wasn't 

 enough to fire our scientific imagin- 

 ations, WHOI scientists also intro- 

 duced us to ABE (Autonomous Benthic 

 Explorer). ABE is an autonomous 

 underwater vehicle (AUV). 



Bearing a remarkable resemblance 

 to Captain Picard's Enterprise 

 ("Star Trek"), ABE is an unmanned, 

 untethered robotic vehicle that uses 

 a complicated array of thrusters, 

 batteries, sensors and computers to 

 perform programmed tasks. Unlike 

 other AUVs under development, 

 ABE is designed for long-term 

 monitoring missions and will spend 

 most of its time asleep on the job. 



ABE is an unmanned, 

 untethered robotic vehicle that uses 

 a complicated array of thrusters, 

 batteries, sensors and computers 

 to perform programmed tasks. 



In 1965, WHOI launched Alvin, 

 giving scientists an opportunity to 

 see the deep sea with their own eyes. 

 Since then, the technology for 

 ocean exploration has advanced 

 significantly, and researchers have 

 used the new array of tools 

 to make exciting discoveries. 



ABE will be attached to a 

 simple hitching post near an 

 area of research. At regular 

 intervals, ABE will roust itself, 

 release its latch and, using an 

 acoustic navigation system to guide 

 its movements, travel around a survey 

 area taking video and measurements. 

 After completing its travels, it will 

 return to its hitching post, latch on 

 and go back to sleep, conserving its 

 batteries for the next trip. The hitching 

 post keeps ABE from moving in ocean 

 currents while it's asleep in a low- 

 power mode. 



ABE meets scientists' needs to 

 gather continual deep-sea data over 

 a long period of time, which is expen- 

 sive using a surface ship or repeated 

 visits from Alvin or Jason. Using ABE. 

 scientists will be able to record changes 

 as they occur instead of gathering 

 information from a site at yearly 

 intervals and trying to determine 

 what changes happened in the 

 interim and why. 



At first, ABE will only 

 be able to follow the set of 

 instructions placed in its 

 memory before deployment. 

 Its data will not be accessible 

 until the robot is recovered. 

 But its engineers envision the 

 day when scientists anywhere in the 

 world can receive video and data 

 from ABE and control its movement 

 and measurements from their home 

 laboratories. 



The WHOI scientists and engin- 

 eers talked enthusiastically of their 

 mechanical inventions, patting and 

 touching them often as if they were 

 children. Undoubtedly, they had spent 

 endless hours designing, building, 

 refining and testing these underwater 

 vehicles. Like parents, they want to 

 show them off. But they need not 

 worry, Jason and ABE make a very 

 good first impression. □ 



COASTWATCH 21 



