This presentation addresses four main questions: What part do autonomous platforms play in reef monitoring and seabed survey? How does their use impact the data collection and analysis workflow? How do we handle the volumes of data generated by large-scale seabed image collection systems? What operating models best meet the needs of today's ecology and sea-country management stakeholders?
For decades, the primary method of data collection in seabed surveys has relied primarily upon divers/snorkelers in the water. Autonomous vessels and high-accuracy image collection systems are mature technologies emerging as key tools in the scale-up of reef monitoring and other areas of ecological research and management programs. This brings with it a new set of challenges related to the increase (by orders of magnitude) in raw data and the subsequent management, analysis and visualisation of it.
Maintaining and operating autonomous platforms and their data collection systems brings a number of novel challenges to organisations accustomed to using crewed vessels with divers/snorkelers in the water. From maintenance and deployment of autonomous vessels to managing data effectively at large scales, this presentation will provide an overview of methods - existing and emerging - for handling these challenges.