American scientists have developed a system to protect whales from collisions with ships. This is reported by the ABC TV channel.
The system was created by specialists of the laboratory of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (USA). Scientists have installed a number of special buoys off the eastern coast of the Atlantic Ocean, which analyzed underwater sounds and recorded signs of the presence of animals. The system transmits information to large ships that cruise in the immediate vicinity of the coast. The deployment of robotic devices was funded by the French shipping giant CMA CGM.
According to experts, there are less than 340 whales in the world, and a collision with ships can be deadly for them. The traditional whale contact warning system provides information about animal migration with a delay of several months. Buoy robots located in the water transmit data every few hours, which reduces the likelihood of a collision and allows you to save animals.
The results of the scan are published on a publicly accessible website and transmitted to the federal authorities. The latter can instruct ships to reduce the speed of movement in certain locations to 10 knots or about 18 kilometers per hour.
CMA CGM President Ed Aldridge said the new system would "responsibly share the ocean with marine mammals and protect endangered species." The company is also going to create a consortium of shippers who will use similar technologies to protect whales.
In early May, a group of international paleontologists found a tooth and several fossilized remains of ichthyosaurs. These reptiles were similar in shape to modern whales, but had a more elongated body shape and straight tail fins.
