Riverscope
Lowered into a muddy stretch of the Hudson River, the unmanned submarine dove through the murk and zigzagged downstream, meticulously collecting information on the water’s condition and transmitting it to scientists.
The robotic explorer, powered by sunlight and navigating on its own, took only a test run, but researchers hope vehicles like it will become part of a river-wide network of sensors that provide constant, real-time data on spills, fish migrations and other aspects of the river’s ecology.
The embryonic Riverscope network is one of many so-called sensor webs for monitoring the planet’s ecosystems, from ocean currents to mice scurrying across corn fields.
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