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This is the RV research vessel KelpFLy and it was designed specifically to fill in
this data gap that now exists on the entire west coast of
the United States.
We’ve got floating kelp there, We’ve got surf,
We’ve got shallows, We’ve got was rocks, things that preclude
conventional research vessels, survey vessels such as the ones in the background
here, from being able to get in there and safely
operate within those depth zones or for the sensors to penetrate floating kelp, turbid
water, etc. and that’s what the KelpFly is.
It’s 160 horse power Yamaha jet ski that is placed in an armored aluminum hull so it
can bounce of off rocks, but it has a floating collar around it,
which makes it extremely stable, so even if you’re in surf,
you’re not likely to flip over or if you bump against a rock,
you’re not gonna hurt it. It’s also extremely maneuverable so we can
get very close to wash rocks where surf is breaking,
and on the bottom, mounted, which you can’t quite see here,
is a very expensive sonar system that allows us to map a very,
very wide swath of the sea floor even when we’re in extremely shallow waters.
So, this boat can operate in water that is shallow as that,
just 18 inches or less is all that is needed to operate in but it can still work.
We just received funding from the Elkhorn Slough Foundation,
to be using this to map, to do comprehensive mapping of the Elkhorn Slough watershed,
both topographic and bathymetric using this vessel
that will be taking place later this month. On all these boats, we have a laser system.
It sits on them and scans the shoreline. We’ve used that successfully a number of
places along the coast. We’ve done Alcatraz Island,
We’ve done the Golden Gate bridge, We’ve done all of Monterey Bay.
We try and involve students with all of this work.
The big reason the sea floor mapping lab exists is to
provide this sort of a service to resource management agencies,
both in a state, federal, or local level, and do It in a way that brings
in sufficient funding to sponsor students to work on those
projects. So the students are taking what they learn
in the classes here, to then work on these projects, get paid for
them, and learn how to turn out a professional product
that’s actually a value and a great need for these
resource management agencies.