APART – Autonomous Platforms As a Research Tool

Observational marine science is science in a hostile environment. Until relatively recently we were restricted to collecting data in situ using specially designed and equipped research vessels but there are too few to all but scratch the surface and our data are biased by their inability to collect data in poor weather or thick sea-ice. Instrumented moorings only cover a tiny number of locations globally and, while satellites have greatly enhanced our ability to study the surface of the ocean, they can only ‘see’ a few tens of metres into an ocean that is on average over 3000 m deep. The development of autonomous platforms - freely drifting (e.g. ARGO floats) or self-propelled robots (e.g. ‘gliders’ or ‘ALR’s such as Boaty McBoatface) that can collect data below the ocean surface, at any time, even under sea-ice - is revolutionising how we study and understand the ocean. With expanding technical capabilities and decreasing cost, increasingly large and complex deployments of autonomous platforms will be an important component of future marine science, the focus of the Future Marine Research Infrastructure Initiative (FMRI). Deployed in sufficient numbers they can provide global ‘pictures’ daily, like a network of satellites within the ocean. At a smaller scale, they allow study in a remote location for months on end, much longer than a research ship could remain. Their uptake further drives development and use of new sensors, designed to exploit these capabilities. Autonomous platforms also open observational marine science to people previously unable to participate, perhaps from physical or other grounds, improving marine science inclusivity. The zero carbon emissions of autonomous platforms is also of benefit in minimising environmental damage. It is therefore imperative that we equip the next generation of marine researchers to be able to exploit fully the great potential that autonomous platforms offer. This course has been designed to provide that much-needed foundation, making use of the national facilities offered by the Marine Autonomous Robotic Systems (MARS) autonomous fleet and the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC), coupled to a team who have pioneered the scientific use of autonomous platforms. It provides a grounding in the full span of knowledge required to use autonomous platforms: from knowing what platforms are available, their strengths and weaknesses, what data can be collected by them, and how one goes about assembling a mission; to what new areas of science these new platforms open up; and to the often under-estimated but vital issue of how the enormous amounts of data they can generate should be handled to make it a resource not just for one project but a valuable resource for the community for many years. It also highlights how research vessels remain a critical component of ocean observations, providing independent data to calibrate autonomous platforms and to allow observations that still require the presence of scientists, of which there will always be many. In the same spirit as autonomous platforms themselves, this training course is designed to be fully virtual. It not only demonstrates that it is possible to do observational science from one’s own office or home but also provides a low carbon (no travel) and low cost approach, by creating a modular course that can be re-used many times, both in entirety and as components of other more detailed training, even in different languages.